Portugal
Over 400 firefighters joined a demonstration in Lisbon on 20 October to protest against government proposals for the fire service. The STAL and STML unions argue that the plans are about getting a fire service on the cheap and fail to provide for a professional service with proper pay and career structure and taking full account of appropriate health and safety standards and working time.
Read more at > STAL (PT)
The FBU firefighters' union has called its members out for two short strikes on 1st and 4th November. The union's is continuing to call for the government and employers to provide some form of guarantee to protect firefighters who may not be able to continue working after 55 following an increase in retirement age for active firefighters from 55 to 60. Read more at > FBU And at > EPSU
Firefighters organised by all three public sector federations (ACOD-CGSP, SLFP-VSOA and ACV-CSC) organised a demonstration in Brussels on 13 December in protest at plans to change the statutes regulating their employment conditions. The unions are particularly angry about the lack of proper negotiations as well as transparency and information about the proposed changes. Read more at > Le Soir newspaper (FR) And at > CGSP/ACOD/SIAMU (FR, NL)
EPSU-PSI LetterEPSU and PSI have written to the Labour Ministry and authorities in Tbilisi to protest about the employment and working conditions of firefighters. Firefighters have been mounting protests since 12 February and some have started a hunger strike. Among the firefighter demands are: dismissal of the Director of the Emergency and Urgent Services Agency; an end to persecution of elected union leaders and intimidation of union members; annulment of the termination of employment of the workers who have been fired on the basis of false accusations; and improvement of working conditions
