Var firefighters join national strike over staffing and resources
Var firefighters are joining a nationwide strike calling for more staff, equipment and funding, although emergency services are not expected to be affected.
Professional firefighters in the Var are joining a nationwide strike on Thursday, August 13, calling for more staff, equipment and funding as emergency services face intense pressure from this summer’s wildfires.
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Nine major firefighters’ unions are taking part in the national mobilisation, with representatives due to hold a press conference outside the Interior Ministry in Paris at 2pm before meeting government officials.
The unions say recent fires in the Var and Gironde have highlighted a system they describe as being “at the end of its tether”.
They are calling for greater resources and better recognition of the risks faced by firefighters, including exposure to toxic smoke and occupational illnesses.
The strike is not expected to affect emergency call-outs in the Var.
Firefighters will remain operational under service requirements, but their protest will be visible through banners, signs and other displays.
Local union leader Guillaume Civray said professional firefighters were suffering from real exhaustion and that goodwill had its limits.
He also stressed that the issue was not only about working conditions but about protecting the public.
Volunteer firefighters are also raising concerns, saying they have not been sufficiently involved in decisions about the future of the service.
Volunteers account for almost 80% of France’s firefighting workforce and make up 4,693 of the Var’s 5,680 firefighters.
The professional firefighters are also planning to join a wider public-sector mobilisation in Toulon on September 29.