Update: 12 August 2013 - This update will assist VFBV delegates in having this discussion with local MPs and encouraging discussion amongst our broader volunteer network.

Sadly, Victoria is still lagging behind other states on presumptive legislation to provide a fairer and simpler path to compensation for volunteer and career firefighters who contract cancer.

The Victorian Government has indicated it is awaiting the results of new Monash University research, when even the researchers have indicated the wait is unnecessary (see below for what they had to say).

In the meantime, you may have seen a recent media report that Government estimates obtained in a Freedom of Information (FOI) application suggest an annual claims cost to CFA of $130 million if the legislation is passed.

VFBV finds that figure difficult to believe, given that evidence accepted by a Senate inquiry considering the federal legislation showed there has not been a rush of claims when overseas governments passed similar laws.

Whether you believe those estimated figures or not, fair protection for firefighters shouldn't be made impossibly hard just to save the Government money.

If the cost really is that high it is because the problem is real and the cost is being borne by sick firefighters and their families.  If that is the case, then it is not reasonable to leave them facing that cost if they contract cancer while protecting community. 

Progress in other states

Tasmania: The Tasmanian Labor Government has introduced draft legislation into Parliament, although the Bill is, in our opinion, quite flawed in that it requires arbitrary numbers of turnouts before a firefighter can qualify for coverage.  The Bill is set to come up in the Tasmanian Lower House in August and expected to pass with the support of Labor and the Greens – the Liberals have not yet stated their position.  The process may be more complicated in the Tasmanian Upper House, which has a significant number of independent MPs.  See the Tasmanian Government’s announcement here.

South Australia: Having initially refused to support a Bill introduced by the Greens on the basis that it was awaiting the results of new research by Monash University, the SA Labor Government has now introduced its own Bill.  The SA Government’s Bill excludes volunteers, with the SA Government saying it is awaiting additional scientific studies before considering them.  You can download the SA Government’s media release below.

Western Australia: The West Australian Liberal National Government has announced it will  introduce presumptive legislation to cover volunteer and career firefighters, based on the Federal Government legislation as is being sought by VFBV, and verbally advised WA volunteer representatives that it will apply from 1 July 2013.  See the WA Government’s announcement here.

Victoria lags behind

It is disappointing that the Victorian Government has not yet declared its support, even though draft legislation has been presented to our Upper House by the Greens, with the in-principle support of Labor.

The Victorian Government has indicated it is awaiting the result of new Monash University research, even though the Australian Senate has already accepted a considerable weight of overseas research, the Australian Parliament passed legislation in 2011 with the support of all of the major parties, and even the Monash University researchers say sufficient evidence already exists.

In a letter to the Greens, researchers Associate Professor Deborah Glass and Professor Malcolm Sim said; 

“…there is already good evidence from a very large number of previous human studies that work as a firefighter is associated with an increased risk of several types cancer…  …waiting for more research findings, especially in this situation where the results of many cancer studies in firefighters are already available, will lead to unacceptable delays, possibly extending into years. “

In the meantime, the Victorian draft legislation will return to the Upper House of Parliament on Wednesday 21 August 2013, with no guarantee it can proceed.  From a VFBV viewpoint the issue shouldn’t be delayed, no matter the outcome on 21 August.  If the Bill can be introduced in the Upper House then volunteers will be looking to the other political parties to support it – if the Bill can only be introduced in the Lower House, then it is up to the major parties to either introduce or support presumptive legislation there.

VFBV has worked to secure the support of all of the major parties for this important initiative, reflecting the all-party support the Federal legislation received in the Australian Parliament in 2011.

VFBV and the United Firefighters’ Union are running a joint campaign for presumptive cancer legislation to apply to all Victorian volunteer and career firefighters.  This issue is fundamental for all firefighters.

What you can do

We call on VFBV delegates across Victoria to contact their local MPs and ask for their active support for presumptive legislation to make the path to cancer compensation simpler and fairer for all Victorian firefighters.  We are asking all Victorian MPs to take up the issue – those who don’t support presumptive legislation should be able to tell you why they do not.

If an MP does not support presumptive legislation, VFBV delegates should ask for their feedback on the issue.  VFBV will inform our membership of the progress on this issue, including making a summary of feedback from MPs available on the VFBV website.

VFBV has prepared a detailed briefing that local delegates can hand to MPs when meeting with them.

VFBV is also working to inform the Premier, Minister and other key MPs, publicising the issue via the media, writing to all State MPs and keeping volunteers informed via our website, the VFBV newsletter, The Fireman and regular updates to VFBV State Councillors and District officials.

The next appearance in the Victorian Parliament

Volunteers can attend State Parliament on the afternoon of Wednesday, 21 August 2013, to hear the debate when the Greens’ proposed Bill returns to the Upper House during the afternoon.  VFBV is not organising an official event, but any presence of volunteers in the public gallery will emphasise the importance of the Bill.

VFBV invites expressions of interest from volunteers who are either involved or have an interest in taking up the Fire Behaviour Analyst (FBAN) role within Incident Management Teams (IMTs).

The invitation is part of the CFA IMTTP (Incident Management Team Training Project) and is open until 30 August 2013.

For those that do not know much about it, a Fire Behaviour Analyst is a technical specialist role. It involves the consideration of science and experience to analyse risk and communicate the results to help emergency managers make decisions.  It is a relatively new role in Victoria. Formal training for the role began in 2007.  Development and uptake of the role was initially rapid, but the need for further role clarification and coordination has been identified.  A project is underway to develop a multi-agency Bushfire Predictive Services Strategy.  The strategy will clarify how fire agencies should best use Fire Behaviour Analysts and their ability to apply science and modelling to make incident predictions.  The Bushfire Predictive Services Strategy will deal primarily with the Fire Behaviour Analyst program.  It will provide a model that could be adapted for other hazards and technical expertise, for example flood prediction.

The FBAN role and Bushfire Predictive Services Strategy probably won’t interest or affect many members, but, like many technical or specialist roles, for the right person it could be a great opportunity for them to use their unique knowledge and experience to improve emergency management in Victoria. The group developing the strategy is keen to tap in to the diversity and depth of knowledge that exists amongst volunteers across the state.  They are trying to develop a strategy based on what end users prefer.  Our challenge is finding the right person or right people to provide feedback.  If we find the right people to help, and they develop a good strategy, we will end up with better support for bushfire management.  Improving the way we integrate bushfire science will make our operations more efficient, more effective and safer.

As a guide, the right people to help with the strategy development would probably:

•         Have had contact with the existing fire behaviour analyst program or have had involvement with similar work (eg flood specialists)

•         Be interested in and knowledgeable about bushfire scientific research or predictive modelling

•         Be interested in weather forecasting

The best people to help with this strategy may not be immediately obvious. They may have a prominent incident management role (eg Planning Officers or Incident Controllers), or have come across fire science and predictive modelling another way.  For those interested helping, there are two lengthy documents providing background details that have informed the strategy development to date and a discussion paper with targeted questions.

The strategy will be drafted soon, so VFBV is trying to identify interested people as quickly as possible.  If you know of someone suitable who would like to be involved, please provide their names, brief outline of their interest and/or experience, and contact details to VFBV Executive Officer Adam Barnett by end of August 2013 (but the sooner the better).  As EOIs come in, Adam will make contact with each person to discuss what opportunities exist for them to be involved.

Contact:

Adam Barnett

Executive Officer, VFBV

Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria

P: (03) 9886 1141 M: 0403 711 911

E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

UPDATED 27 September: The VFBV Annual General Meeting has voted unanimously to adopt proposed changes that remove urban and rural brigade distinctions from the association’s constitution.

The voting on 11 proposals followed extensive consultation with District Councils - see below to download the discussion paper that preceded the vote.

The changes include;

• An addition to VFBV’s Statement of Purpose; ‘To maintain and pursue a balanced focus on issues affecting CFA volunteers across all brigades from all risk profiles.’
• Abolishing the titles of Vice President Rural and Vice President Urban, replacing those positions with two State Council ex-officio Board Members elected by State Council each year
• Changing the titles of the VFBV President and Vice President to State President and State Vice President, to end any potential confusion with the titles of District Council officials
• Replacing the State Council Urban and Rural subcommittees with special purpose committees

You can download a copy of the VFBV Constitution, amended 15 September 2013, here.

Changes to CFA

 Limited time for volunteers to comment

STORY UPDATED 6 AUGUST: 

Under the name of Creating our Future Together, CFA is proposing significant changes to the way the Regions work and CFA supports Brigades.

CFA is calling for feedback and has now extended the deadline for comment on the proposals to Friday, 30 August, after VFBV expressed concern that volunteers were not being given sufficient time to hear about the changes and consider them.

The proposed changes include; 

• Reorganising Districts in to five Regions instead of the current eight
• New Assistant Chief Officers in the roles of Regional Director/Regional Commander
• Changes to the roles of Brigades, Groups, Districts and Regions
• Changes to the way Brigades are supported
• Allocation of resources by workload, not location

CFA says the changes are intended to improve support to Brigades and members, reduce red tape and enable better service delivery.

Please familiarise yourself with the proposals, help spread the word among your fellow volunteers and provide any comments by Friday, 30 August.  See below for links to CFA’s information.

If you have any concerns or comments, please raise them through the methods made available by CFA, talk to your State Councillors, call the VFBV office or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The CFA CEO explains the proposals under Creating our Future Together in his blog, here.