£80,000 for sacked fireman in chair row

Christopher Bennett, 46, a firefighter for 25 years, had protested that new 400 chairs he and colleagues were forced to use to sleep in were making his back problem worse.

Mr Bennett, who suffers from arthritis of the spine, emailed colleagues in the brigade to ask if any were suffering similar discomfort – and was sacked by bosses at Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service.

An employment tribunal found Mr Bennett, from Stockport, Cheshire, was unfairly dismissed on the grounds his right to freedom of expression under the Human Rights Act had been breached.

The service has agreed an 80,000 out-of-court settlement with his lawyers, employment and union rights specialists Thompsons Solicitors.

Management at the authority bought 300 of the reclining chairs in 2006, banning the use of beds in the brigade's 41 stations which had previously been used by firemen when not dealing with emergencies while on night shifts.

The move was opposed at the time with firemen complaining they were uncomfortable.

Mr Bennett asked the authority to let him use his own mattress, but his request was refused and he was told to use the chairs or benches in the snooker room at his station in Stockport.

He sent the email in February 2008 asking if other firefighters were having problems and was dismissed for gross misconduct and lost an appeal.

The tribunal, however, found his email was of political and public interest in that firefighters should be alert and fit to do their job and Mr Bennett was seeking in his own way to protect public safety.

Steve Shelton, the Fire Brigades Union official who represented Mr Bennett during his disciplinary hearings, said: " To lose his job for speaking out about his concerns for safety was a sanction too far."

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said: "We are extremely disappointed in the outcome of this case. We believe that by soliciting support against the service, Mr Bennett irreparably broke an employer's trust, hence our decision not to reinstate him."