The League of Portuguese Firefighters warned this Wednesday, as the 120th anniversary of associations in the sector is celebrated, that it is essential to create a career for firefighters, stressing that this is “a very serious gap that has existed for more than 17 years.”
“The League is celebrating the 120th anniversary of its unification. Let’s use this date to draw the attention of all politicians in the country to the absolute need to create a career and a highly paid status for firefighters (…) with an employment contract and who, to date, have not been able to achieve this, despite the fact that since 2007 there have been intention to pass the law,” António Nunez, president of the League of Portuguese Firefighters (LBP), told Lusa.
On April 17, 1904, a group of fire chiefs from different parts of the country founded the first Federation of Fire Fighters, which later gave rise to the Portuguese League of Fire Fighters.
This Wednesday, LBP intends to “bring attention” to the government and municipalities, demanding the publication of a “legal document” that will allow firefighters to have “the dignity that any worker should have.”
Antonio Nunez said that “no career means no retention” of firefighters.
“If there is a company or service that is looking for labor that pays more, naturally the firefighters will remain volunteers, but they will not provide daytime work, which is what we are interested in,” the director emphasized, noting that humanitarian missions such as daily transportation patients may be compromised.
Asking for brevity and consideration, the LBP president warned that “it is best to address issues now,” as “the time may come when someone will have to take more drastic action that requires a decision.”
“It has always been like this. When there is a problem, you should not think that this problem will disappear. If this problem does not exist, or when it does, sooner or later it will end up on the negotiating table. And, at this point, firefighters begin to become overwhelmed, so it is better to solve this problem early before a more serious problem arises,” he said.
However, António Nuñez said he was convinced that there would be a dialogue with the LBP “to find a mechanism that will satisfy the firefighters,” noting that a meeting with the government had already been requested but had not yet received a response.
“It’s normal to need a little more time. We’ll give it a little more time and then we’ll see. (…) From now on everyone knows about the problem. Therefore, we must solve it together. “, winced.
The LBP president added that “measures will be taken” if there is no response “within 15 days or three weeks.”
Celebrations to mark the 120th anniversary of the founding of the Federation of Portuguese Firefighters will be chaired by the Minister of the Interior, Margarida Blasco, at 15:45 at the LBP headquarters in Lisbon.