report from the picket lines in belfast

national | miscellaneous | news report Friday November 22, 2002 12:36 by Dan Buckley - Socialist Workers Party dan_buckley_1917 at hotmail dot com

A brief report from an FBU picket line in belfast.

At nine o’clock sharp this morning fire fighters and control room staff walked out of fire stations across Britain and Northern Ireland. The mood at central station (the largest fire station in Belfast) was one of somber and general anger at the government.

Many fire fighters didn’t want to be on the pickets at all but felt they were forced into strike action by the dismal offer put forward by them by the Bain review and then by the Blair governments stance on pay early this morning.

On the pickets it was obvious that fire fighters had broad support. Nearly all the cars that went past the picket line hooted in support. A member of the SWP addressed the picket line and handed over £270 that was raised on stalls around the city in the run up to the strike.

One thing is becoming clear to the fire fighters on the pickets, solidarity is the key. Already delegations from different workplaces visited picket lines last week, and in the coming days fire fighters are expected to address meetings of postal workers and other low paid workers.

Already in London tube workers are turning sympathy into solidarity. In the last strike tube workers successfully closed down most of the underground system. This sort of action is starting to spread as the FBU strike continues.

VICTORY TO THE FIREFIGHTERS!!!