British Firefighters To Vote on Job Action

LONDON (AP) -- The firefighters' union said Tuesday that its members would vote next week on whether to strike or take a job action as part of a dispute over pay.

A series of strikes by the Fire Brigades Union in late 2002 and early 2003 forced the government to send soldiers out to fight fires with aging equipment and turned many Britons against the union.

The union said it had sent letters to local fire authorities to inform them of the decision to ballot workers after talks to end the pay dispute broke down.

The two sides disagreed about how to implement the final phase of the agreement that ended the last round of strikes. That deal made part of the pay raise contingent on modernizing work practices.