WORKERS need the right to time off and remuneration when undergoing fertility treatment, an FBU resolution at the union’s annual conference in Blackpool acknowledged today.

Durham firefighter Hollie Codling said that that those undergoing IVF are advised to avoid stress and physically demanding activities to prevent the risk of embryos being expelled.

“For those employed within the fire-and-rescue services across the UK, this is especially concerning as the work that’s undertaken can be both physical and stressful,” she said.

“It’s clear that working as a firefighter can have a detrimental impact on the IVF process.”

Gemma Betts, who had two children with her wife from fertility treatment, said: “For many LGBT individuals and couples, fertility treatment is a vital path to parenthood.” 

She said that union support “sends a powerful message that all paths to parenthood are valued and supported, helping to create a more inclusive and supportive workplace.”

Speaking on the executive council’s statement on challenging sexual harassment, FBU assistant general secretary Ben Selby repeated statistics from a recent union survey which found that 30 per cent of women reported experiencing sexual harassment in an FBU context.

Reports into other trade unions such as the GMB, TSSA and RCN have highlighted the scale of the issue in the labour movement. 

Kerry McCrone from the national women’s committee said the report was “sobering but not shocking.”

She said that calling out sexual harassment “should not only be left to women,” saying that it will “only be rooted out when we all consider it unacceptable and challenge it when it occurs.”

Mr Selby said a full action plan is due to be approved by the executive council in June.

FBU Lincolnshire chairman Dan Taylor, who lost his son in 2023, introduced a resolution to have PTSD screening to allow for timely intervention “which can significantly reduce the long-term impacts of trauma” and reduce stigma. 

Also highlighting the urgent need for this was Nottinghamshire chairman Brendan Woodhouse, who lost his daughter in a car crash two years ago.

Suffering from PTSD, he said he was “forgotten” by the occupational health department.

Will Burt, an organiser for Scotland, highlighted that the firefighting role in its nature “leads to members being exposed to traumatic events” and called for the introduction of mental health specialists. 

The resolution was carried and supported by the EC.