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06 Sept 2025
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06 Sept 2025
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Independent Cllr Gerry Warnock shows his solidarity with a group of retained firefighters outside the offices of Longford County Council last week
Local Government Minister Daragh O’Brien is coming under increasing pressure to step in and bring an end to ongoing industrial action taken by retained firefighters despite a planned all-out strike being called off this week.
The planned action, scheduled for yesterday (Tuesday) was called off following exploratory talks at the Labour Court.
A number of part-time fire services personnel staged a picket outside the headquarters of Longford County Council ahead of last week’s monthly council meeting.
The row centres on demands for improved pay and conditions with warnings from trade union SIPTU that the action will be escalated to an all-out strike next week if the dispute is not resolved.
The country’s 2,000 retained firefighters began co-ordinated rolling strikes on Tuesday in a move that closed half the country’s 200 stations.
Councillors unanimously backed calls for Mr O’Brien to intervene and settle the dispute following a concerted plea by Cllr Peggy Nolan at last week’s meeting of Longford County Council.
“Not one of these people are in that job for money,” she said, while pausing to reveal her own late father was a retained firefighter.
“I am asking for a whole new scenario to be put in place so that it is a career, and looked on as a career, because as far as I am concerned these men and women give willingly to provide excellent public service.”
Those overtures were given further weight by Councillors Gerry Warnock and Seamus Butler.
The former said retained firefighters caught up in the dispute had to effectively put their own lives on hold in order to carry out their own duties, something which Cllr Butler said also impinged on those firms that employ such individuals.
He referenced how his own business was among a select number of locally based companies that proudly had a retained firefighter on its books.
“I have an employee who is a retained firefighter and they have permission to leave at very short notice which we believe is good for the community and we do that willingly,” he said.
His fellow Fianna Fáil party colleague Cllr Martin Monaghan was arguably more frank, saying it was time “the minister opened his eyes and his pockets.”
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