Firefighters' Rights in Scotland

Who this guide is for

Firefighters employed by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS), both wholetime and on-call (retained duty system).

What this guide does not cover

• Firefighters in England, Wales or Northern Ireland: see Firefighters' Rights in England and Wales or Firefighters' Rights in Northern Ireland.
• Brigade managers, and support staff on other terms.
• Your general rights as an employee: see Your Rights as an Employee in England, Wales and Scotland.
• Ballots, picketing and the general strike rules: see Can My Employer Refuse to Recognise Our Union in England, Wales or Scotland?.
• Whistleblowing: see Whistleblowing at Work in England, Wales and Scotland.
• Tribunal time limits in detail: see Employment Tribunal Claims in England, Wales and Scotland.

What the rules depend on

1. Are you wholetime or on-call?
2. What is it about? Pay and conditions, a strike, part-time treatment, hours, your pension, or an assault.
3. When did you join the pension scheme? That decides whether the pension remedy affects you.
4. When did it happen? That date decides your tribunal time limit.

"What are the Grey Book conditions?"

The National Joint Council for Local Authority Fire and Rescue Services (NJC) agrees national pay and conditions, set out in the Scheme of Conditions of Service known as the Grey Book. The NJC's employers' side includes 3 members from the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA).

The Grey Book (7th edition, updated April 2025) refers to the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 and has its own list of public holidays for employees in Scotland. It says the conditions of part-time employees are the same as those of full-time employees, pro rata where appropriate. Your own contract says which terms apply to you.

The NJC agreed a 3.8% increase on basic pay rates from 1 July 2026. Ask SFRS or your union how and when this applies to you.

"Can firefighters strike?"

Yes. The union must follow the general rules, such as balloting and giving notice.

• The Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 was repealed on 18 December 2025.
• From 18 February 2026, dismissing someone for taking part in protected industrial action became automatically unfair, however long the action lasts. This applies where you started taking part on or after 18 February 2026.
• Also from 18 February 2026, a union must give 10 days' notice of industrial action instead of 14, and a ballot mandate lasts 12 months instead of 6.

"I'm on-call. Do I get the same as wholetime?"

The Part-time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000 apply in Scotland. A part-time worker has the right not to be treated less favourably than a comparable full-time worker, in the terms of the contract or by any other detriment. This applies only if the treatment is because you are part-time and is not justified on objective grounds. The pro rata principle applies unless it is inappropriate.

The comparable full-time worker must work for the same employer under the same type of contract, doing the same or broadly similar work, normally at the same establishment.

"Do the working time limits apply to firefighters?"

Mostly, yes. Fire brigades are one of the "civil protection services" in the Working Time Regulations 1998. Regulation 18(2)(a) says some of the rules (including the 48-hour week, night work limits, rest periods, rest breaks and annual leave) do not apply:

"where characteristics peculiar to certain specific services such as the armed forces or the police, or to certain specific activities in the civil protection services, inevitably conflict with the provisions of these Regulations"

This applies only to activities that inevitably conflict. If you have to work during a rest period under the civil protection rules, your employer must wherever possible give you equivalent compensatory rest.

"What is happening with my pension?"

The SPPA says you are eligible for the 2015 remedy if you joined a public service pension scheme on or before 31 March 2012 and were still a member on or after 1 April 2015.

• Eligible members can choose legacy or reformed scheme benefits for the remedy period, 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022.
• From 1 April 2022 everyone in service is in the reformed scheme.
• The SPPA sends a Remediable Service Statement (RSS) to help you decide which benefits to take for the remedy period.

"What if I'm assaulted or obstructed at work?"

The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 does not apply in Scotland. The Emergency Workers (Obstruction) Act 2006 covers Scotland only for Ministry of Defence firefighters.

In Scotland, the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005 makes it an offence to assault, obstruct or hinder a person employed by SFRS while they carry out its emergency functions, such as firefighting, road traffic accidents, other emergencies and investigating fires. The person must know, or ought to know, that you are acting in that capacity. The maximum on summary conviction is 12 months in prison, a fine, or both.

Report it to the police. Your employer also has health and safety duties: see Health & Safety at Work: Your Rights in 2026.

"What is the Fire and Rescue Framework?"

The Fire and Rescue Framework for Scotland 2022 sets out Scottish Ministers' expectations of SFRS. It does not change your contract.

Deadlines you must meet

• Most employment tribunal claims: 3 months less 1 day from the act you are complaining about. It is 6 months less 1 day only where that act (or the last act in a series) happened on or after 1 October 2026.
• Notify Acas within your time limit. Early conciliation pauses the clock. If you contacted Acas on or after 1 December 2025, early conciliation can last up to 12 weeks.

Money figures

• NJC pay increase: 3.8% on basic pay rates from 1 July 2026.
• Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005 offence: up to 12 months in prison on summary conviction.

Traps

• Do not use the England and Wales assault and obstruction Acts in Scotland. Scotland has its own 2005 Act.
• The working time exclusion for civil protection services is not a blanket exclusion.
• The minimum service levels law no longer applies.
• If you joined after 31 March 2012, the pension remedy choice is unlikely to affect you: check with the SPPA.
• Do not use the 6-month tribunal limit for an act that happened before 1 October 2026.