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Strike ballot over fat fireman

by Dave Keating | July 16, 2008 at 02:24 am | 167 views | add comment

After a firefighter in the UK was fired because he is obese, his fellow firefighters in Northeast Scotland are voting today on whether to go on strike over the sacking.

Firefighters have agreed to ballot for strike action over the sacking of a colleague who management decided was overweight and not fit for duty.

Kevin Ogilvie was dismissed by Grampian Fire and Rescue after 22 years, on the grounds he posed a safety risk.

Members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) met in Aberdeen on Tuesday night to discuss industrial action.

They claim he could have been moved. Grampian Fire and Rescue said its decision followed an arduous process.

FBU branch secretary Alan Paterson said the union would now lodge an official trades dispute and a ballot would be held by the end of the summer.