“In Italy the working conditions of the Fire Brigade are dramatic. Understaffed for too many years now, forced to work exhausting shifts especially in the summer period with recalls and overtime returns, without INAIL insurance against accidents at work and professional diseases, struggling with a government that hides the truths and capable only of propaganda. In 2030, the staffing of the Fire Brigade, considering the retirements of the next few years, will have such a shortage that there will be a real risk of not covering the entire territory, if anything only the metropolitan cities. These are some of the issues that we will put at the center of today’s meeting with the Minister of the Interior Piantedosi”.
This was declared by Mauro Giulianella, National Coordinator of the FP CGIL VVF. “The consequences of increasingly extreme atmospheric phenomena with heat in the south and severe bad weather in the north, the G7 around the corner, the start of the forest fire campaign, the services of the rural and aquatic garrisons, two training courses still in the start-up phase for approximately 1280 applicants for the qualification of
team leader between generalists and specialists: a sum of circumstances that highlights the Administration’s inability to organize and plan the activities related to the rescue. To complete the picture, urgent daily technical assistance must be guaranteed. A situation which, we are convinced, would also exhaust ‘bionic man’”, he continues. “To this state of unease – says Giulianella – we add the expired contract, a professional system that is leaking from all sides and an Administration that does not respect correct trade union relations, placing the responsibilities of the rescue, in a disrespectful manner, on the large availability of the Corps staff who, due to their forma mentis, lend themselves on every occasion and for the good of the citizens, demonstrating great professionalism”. “The Fire Brigade is working with 4000 operational and 2500 administrative personnel (RTP) less than necessary. With work overloads that are sometimes unacceptable. The fallback to extraordinary is now ordinary. Some would say that we are really broke. For years the Union has been denouncing the critical issues linked to urgent technical assistance and excessive workloads, nevertheless the women and men who work in the area enjoy undignified treatment: for this reason we will monitor and if necessary we will call the staff to support the fighting initiatives”, concludes Giulianella.
