Labourstart News
| Priorities | 3rd June 2008  |
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Today the NSW Government handed down a state budget that will cut taxes for business and property investors, fund a surplus of over $200 million and slash public sector workers wages by an average of approximately 1.5% a year in real terms. On closer analysis of the budget papers the NSWFB has had an increase of 6% on last years budget. This has been used to fund enhanced staffing at Coffs Harbour, Queanbeyan, Narellan and Kincumber brigades, to buy new fire engines, rescue equipment, air-sets, cameras and to fund new Community Fire Units. Interestingly while the Department’s budget has been increased by a total of 6%, employee related wages costs have received funding of just 1.6% on last years costs. The Rural Fire Service however has had its overall budget increased by 1.5% while its employee related wage costs have increased by 8.7%. Clearly the Department has spent many hours working out its priorities for the years ahead and those don’t include our wages. The budget papers also show that the Department’s costs came in at nearly $17 million more than its budget last year and firefighters are now paying the price. The Rural Fire Service however ran over its budget by just $1.3 million. While the NSW budget might be good for fire service managers and bureaucrats it is anything but good for public servants and in particular firefighters. No one would argue that we don’t need new trucks, new 10/14 stations, cameras, fans and air-sets but these don’t pay our wages and they don’t put food on our families tables. This budget is the clearest indication yet that with the cost of living surging ahead the priorities held by the Department are vastly different to the expectations of frontline firefighters. With our wage case now due back in front of the Industrial Relations Commission on Thursday we can expect the Department to increasingly reveal just exactly what it thinks of firefighters and the job we do in protecting communities throughout the state. The Union is now throwing everything it has into winning a real increase in wages for the next 2.5 years. That includes the first of the Union’s television advertisements due to screen during the ‘Fire 000’ television program on the Nine Network this Wednesday (June 4th) between 7:30 and 8 pm. A copy of that advertisement has now been uploaded onto the Union’s website. The question every firefighter in NSW needs to ask is just what are we prepared to do about a Government that rode into office on the back of the public sector Unions and is now slashing our wages simply because it thinks it can get away with it. Simon Flynn State Secretary |
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