Scotland’s fire and rescue service is in the grip of a bullying “crisis” with more than one in five employees having been victim of or witnessed inappropriate behaviour.

An ITV Border investigation has uncovered a series of concerns around discrimination and harassment which has worsened in recent years.

Multiple frontline firefighters and civilian staff have raised concerns internally either through formal grievance procedures, informally notifying managers or in some cases submitting dossiers chronicling instances of individuals being targeted in ways that were perceived as being unfair. 

Multiple sources claimed that as well as bullying, there have been complaints of sexual harassment.

Lynn Sweeney, 65, worked for the service for 18 years and last year had a grievance upheld after she complained about bullying by two managers.

She said that they spoke inappropriately towards staff members, which culminated in them acting in an “extremely aggressive” manner towards her during a disagreement at a fire station in Clydebank. 

She was signed off work after the latter incident and did not return but said she was repeatedly pressured by senior management to return and to drop the complaint.

“At the end of the day, I loved my job,” she said. “But I hated the culture. And that’s something that you can’t control.”

ITV News has spoken to three other staff members, including a former senior officer, a current employee and a former staff member. Each highlighted what they called a “toxic” culture within the service.

The former firefighter said: “Bullying and harassment, combined with immoral and unethical behaviours has become commonplace, particularly at a senior level. Anyone who tries to challenge this behaviour or raise complaints, including those in senior positions, are subtly sidelined and marginalised.”

The current staff member said: “Management comes together to protect themselves at all costs, but ordinary workers are continually thrown under the bus.”

The former employee said they were left unable to sleep because of “bullying and bad management”, adding: “It is a dangerously toxic culture.” 

Similar concerns were highlighted by senior officials in the Fire Brigades Union, who said a “boys’ club” exists within the service that has failed to deal with serious problems.

This anecdotal evidence is backed up by internal staff surveys, which have been obtained using freedom of information legislation.
Internal research carried out last year found that 21 per cent of employees who replied “have personally experienced or observed discrimination, bullying and/or harassment in the workplace over the last 12 months”. 

Of those who said they had seen or been victim of bullying, harassment or discrimination, fewer than half (45 per cent) reported the behaviour internally.

Just 17 per cent of people who escalated concerns were satisfied with the outcome. The remaining 83 per cent said they were unhappy with the results.

The only other staff survey undertaken by the service, which took place in 2018, found that 10 per cent of staff members said they had “personally experienced bullying or harassment at work”. 

Eleven per cent said they had “personally received discrimination at work” in 2018 but it is unclear how many people said they had been mistreated in response to both questions.

Confidence fell in other key areas in the six years between the survey. Just 33 per cent of people said in 2022 that the service’s policies were applied “fairly and consistently” (down 38 points) and 52 per cent said they felt able to “speak up and express my honest opinion about my role” (down 16 points).

After the 2018 report, the service told employees it would run follow-up surveys every two years to monitor “action plans” aimed at tackling problems raised by staff.

Mrs Sweeney said there was an “embedded” cultural problem in the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, adding: “But it’s a case of, ‘We are here to protect the organisation, not the individual’.”

A separate investigation took place into the two individuals involved but the service said it was unable to disclose the outcome of that because of confidentiality requirements.

However, in a letter to Mrs Sweeney, seen by ITV News, a senior officer said: “I can advise the appropriate actions were taken.”
Mrs Sweeny’s doctor said she was unable to go back to her job because of the impact of the process on her mental health. 

But her application to retire on ill-health grounds was rejected and she was dismissed because she could not go back to work after a near two-year absence.

She said: “This didn’t just affect my job. It impacted on who I was as a person. And I didn’t want to become the person that I was becoming. I was always the strong one, the one that spoke up. I was always the go to person at home and outwith. 

“And suddenly I was at the point where I didn’t want to drive, where my husband became a taxi driver. I didn’t want to go places where there were too many people or people I didn’t know. And I just wanted me back.”

In 2022, Martin Blunden quit as chief officer while an investigation was ongoing into bullying allegations. The service said at the time that it could not comment on the probe into the claims. He was replaced by Ross Haggart, who retired after just a year in post.

Opposition parties called for an investigation to take place into the culture in the service.

Two years ago, Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay raised what he called “detailed concerns about an alleged culture of bullying, cronyism and poor governance relating to Scotland’s national fire service, but these were dismissed by SNP ministers”.

He said: “It was clear back then that there were serious problems, but the government showed no interest in doing the right thing.

“They must now show respect for firefighters by listening to them, properly investigating these fresh allegations and taking the appropriate action.”

Scottish Labour’s community safety spokesperson Katy Clark said: “These shocking reports suggest there is a bullying crisis unfolding in the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

“Firefighters do lifesaving work and they must be able to work without fear of bullying, harassment or discrimination.”

Stuart Stevens, chief officer of the service, said that no form of bullying, harassment or discrimination would be tolerated “and action is taken where issues are reported”.

A confidential service has been launched to allow concerns to be reported anonymously, he added.

Mr Stevens said: “One of my top priorities is to improve the culture and leadership within the service and we are committed to creating a workplace where all staff are treated with dignity and respect.

“Getting this right is a priority. We have developed an action plan with colleagues and trade union representatives and considered sector-wide lessons learned.”

He said that the information gathered in last year’s survey would be used to push through those changes.

Siobhian Brown, the community safety minister, said: “Bullying and harassment is unacceptable in any circumstances and any allegations must be taken very seriously. 

“While staffing and disciplinary procedures are a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Board, I am clear that all employees should act in line with the values and behaviours expected of everyone in the service, and I welcome the chief fire officer’s commitment to a workplace where all staff are treated with dignity and respect.”