Fire fighters strikes

[Shakira]

I think the fire fighters are being very irresponsible and I wouldnt let them have more than a 10% raise. They don't do there job for the money they do it because they want to. Striking is a very bad idea!!!

[CinaC]

They do their job because they want to? I guess that applies to cops too. And doctors. And everyone who does their job - waiters, programmers, writers, editors, journalists, the guy working at Exxon at 2am, crack whore prostitutes .... Because we all know that people only get jobs that they love. So let's not pay anyone, because they love their jobs and should be willing to work for free.

[FLLawdog]

Any public safety profession is underpaid because it's a necessity, not a luxury. Therefore the law of supply and demand doesn't apply.

By using your logic, then, anybody out there doing any job shouldn't get a raise because it's "what they want to do".

Now, the next time, God forbid, your house is on fire or you have a medical emergency, I hope you see how much they "want to do the job" as opposed to your NEED of them "wanting to the job".

While I'm on the subject, is it really a bad thing to "want" to do your job" Doesn't everyone out there want to have a job they enjoy going to every day?

[FLLawdog]

I didn't even notice where this posted. Unless you care to consider this to be your introduction, I'm moving it to General Topics...

[CinaC]

I wish I had a job where I got paid lots of money to kill people and sleep with beautiful women. But since Double-Oh Seven doesn't make a lot of money, and since I don't want to go work for British intelligence, I'll just stick with what I'm doing.

[Peeler]

Shakira, our firefighters do a very good job and are definitley underpaid. Like other members have posted, being in the emergency services is not a regular job,its a vocation. We all know that on the whole the pay is not that great and the working conditions leave quite alot to be desired. Like us police, everytime a call is answered it could be the last ever call that firefighter attends. So for putting their lives on the line they do deserve a payrise. However, initially asking for 40% was a bit much and I think that if you speak to most of them they will agree that it was a pretty optomistic amount. Personally I think that a 25% to 30% one off increase would be more than adequate on the proviso that reforms would be made and also that they would agree to an act of parliament making it illegal for them to strike in future (which is the case for us police).
Back in the mid 70`s the police received a similar large payrise as the then pay was so poor that corruption was a serious problem.

One last thought. How much would you pay to be rescued from the tenth floor of a burning building???