There are some instances where message control can be expedient and some instances where a paucity of facts simply starts a wildfire of speculation and worry. Few instances are more clearly a failure of the first approach than the State Government’s handling of the EBA dispute between the CFA and the firefighters union. If nothing else, when it comes to the test of quelling community concern with a solid dose of honesty and disclosure; the government has definitely failed. The complexities of the industrial instrument or the shades of the three year dispute; not to mention a far deeper and more complicated cultural divide may not lend themselves to clarity but by vacating the field the government has simply handed over the agenda to whoever wants to seize the stage. The Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull did this with brilliant opportunism on the weekend despite it traditionally being a state issue. But even with the force of this support and emotionally charged sea of orange to drive the argument it is worth establishing some key points.
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There are two fundamental areas of reasonable concern. The first is public safety. It has been said many times when it comes to the bulk of our bushfires and particularly in small townships and outlying areas it is the volunteer force that responds first and hopefully gets these blazes under control quickly.
The fear that seven professional firefighters would need to be on scene before volunteers did anything is alarming and potentially disastrous if response times in rural or remote locations were to blow out. But it is simply not true according to the Union and the Fair Work Commissioner. The Government owes the public this much of a guarantee that public safety, and the role the CFA plays in it, will not be compromised under any industrial agreement.
Then there is the issue of good-will. The CFA is essentially a volunteer service as anything else would be a prohibitive drain on the public purse. As such the community contribution of these many individuals who give up their own time derives and deserves a huge amount of public good-will. The cultural battle between the professionals and the volunteers may be a long and sensitive but a deal cannot appear to threaten or unjustifiably subordinate this good will. This is about a lot more than votes, it is a great unpaid resource which demands respect and at the very least some direct answers on how they will be governed in the future.
