These professionals ask to be heard and valued and guarantee that they will not stop the protests, even promising to discuss possible new fighting actions if the Government refuses to negotiate.
Sappers and professional firefighters are this Tuesday next to the Government headquarters, in Lisbon, where a meeting is taking place – which has since been suspended – with sector unions.
These professionals demand that their career be valued, with a increase of 200 euros and the payment of a risk allowance equivalent to that of security forcesabut they consider that the Executive has only presented “devaluation proposals”.
“What is happening is an imposition by the Government with disrespectful proposals to sappers. (…) We risk our lives and the Government has a proposal of 37 euros per month in risk allowance”, one of the firefighters participating in the demonstration told SIC.
They ask to be heard and valued and guarantee that they will not stop the protestseven promising to discuss possible new fighting actions if the Government refuses to negotiate.
“The Government doesn’t want to negotiate? We want the unions to leave the negotiations.”
This morning, the Government met with professional unions, but SIC knows that the meeting was, however, suspended due to the protest.
“The noise and the smoke, I know it sounds like a fuss, but this is our office. We are used to this, every day we risk our lives to save others. And who saves us, our career?” asks the firefighter.
It also guarantees that the aid to the population “is never compromised”.
“Not wanting to offend sensitivities and unlike INEM which has no staff and does not answer calls, whether we are on strike or not, if there is a call for any type of incident we are there”, he added.
