Right: Prime Minister Scott Morrison has responded to calls to compensate NSW firefighters by announcing they will receive payment of up to $6000 depending on how long they have spent fighting fires.
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Background information
Australia's volunteer firefighting agencies
Throughout Australia there are many volunteer firefighting agencies which are set up by the individual states or territories.
New South Wales is serviced by two statutory firefighting authorities. These are the New South Wales Rural Fire Service (NSWRFS) and Fire and Rescue NSW. Fire and Rescue NSW has firefighting and rescue responsibilities for the major cities, metropolitan areas and several other towns in NSW. It also has the responsibility for all land-based HAZMAT incidents as well as inland waterway-based HAZMAT incidents. The NSWRFS is the volunteer firefighting service in NSW and consists of over 70,000 volunteers and has responsibility for over 90% of the land area in NSW. Although most of this is bush and grass land, the NSWRFS also serve smaller and regional communities that are not covered by Fire and Rescue NSW. Despite some overlapping in firefighting coverage/resources by both services, the NSWRFS does not provide rescue or HAZMAT services in the State. Firefighting services
In Victoria, there are three main firefighting organisations, Metropolitan Fire and Emergency Services Board (MFB), Country Fire Authority (CFA) and The Department of Environment, Water, Land, and Planning (DEWLP). The CFA is a volunteer and community-based fire and emergency services organisation that is made up of around 61,000 members. Of these members, some 59,000 are volunteers. Their roles range from fire, rescue, HAZMAT, to non-operational support roles. Firefighting services
In Western Australia, firefighting is organised by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) together with Local Councils. DFES operate the Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service Brigades (VFRS) and some Bush Fire Service Brigades (BFS), while the remainder of the Bush Fire Service Brigades are trained by DFES but operated and administrated by the Council of the associated area. VFRS Brigades are generally more involved in structural firefighting, Asset Protection and Road Crash Rescue depending on their location, whereas the BFS Brigades are generally more involved in Wildfire Fighting. In Western Australia there is an estimated 31,000 BFS Members among 585 Brigades, and 2,000 VFRS Members among 88 Brigades. Firefighting services
In South Australia, there are two legislated firefighting organisations. The South Australian Metropolitan Fire Service (SAMFS) and the South Australian Country Fire Service (SACFS). The SACFS is staffed by approximately 13,500 volunteer fire fighters and around 120 paid employees. Firefighting services
Payment for volunteer firefighters
Though volunteer firefighters are entitled to compensation if they are injured while on the ground, they otherwise receive very little financial assistance.
Prior to the arrangements recently proposed by prime minister, Scott Morrison, some workers were eligible for up to five days of special leave from work every year to assist volunteer organisations, and that could be increased in a declared emergency. For longer periods of leave, it is entirely up to individual employers as to whether they grant time away from work, and how that is processed - as fully paid, time in lieu, partly paid or leave without pay.
Volunteer Firefighters Association President, Mick Holton, has noted that government agencies and larger companies were typically more able and willing to afford to lose staff for days at a time. Smaller businesses, he observed, often struggle to pay staff who were volunteering.
Some of the states provide a payroll tax exemption for wages paid to workers attending emergencies during rostered hours. However, many volunteers are not compensated for out-of-pocket expenses like fuel, food and equipment.