Airport firefighters fight moves to limit their role to aviation incidents only

Airport fire and rescue teams are threatening industrial action over proposed changes to their job description.

CASA is also considering changing the colour of airport fire trucks to red, in the interests of uniformity.

Airport firefighters are again threatening industrial action, this time over moves to narrow the focus of their role to aviation-only incidents.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority is conducting a review of fire and rescue services at airports which could lead to some functions being removed.

These include responding to fire alarms and car crashes outside the airport’s immediate vicinity, non-life threatening first aid situations and marine accidents in large waterways adjacent to airports.

CASA also proposed that fire and rescue services at rural airports be provided for scheduled air transport operations only, rather than around the clock.

The United Firefighters Union said it was a case of “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” and warned the proposed changes would lead to confusion and a downgrading of safety standards.

“The functions of the Aerodrome Rescue and Firefighting Services (ARFFS) should not be narrowed,” said UFU aviation branch secretary Wes Garrett.

“(In) trying to restrict the functions of the ARFFS, a series of difficult demarcation issues arise which cannot be efficiently solved by prescriptive rules.”

United Firefighters Union aviation branch secretary Wes Garrett.

He said trying to “define what constituted an aviation and non-aviation incident” was fraught with difficulties, citing the case of a person suffering a heart attack in an airport carpark.

“This will also add pressure to local fire services which will be expected to attend more incidents in and near airports, previously attended by ARFFS,” Mr Garrett said.

“Every year there are thousands and thousands of life-threatening emergencies near airports, and tens of millions of people pass through these facilities. The response times will blow out and lives will be put at risk, no doubt about it.”

Late last year, airport firefighters were poised to take industrial action over their push for a 15.5 per cent pay rise over four years and claims of understaffing.

An eleventh hour deal for a one-year enterprise agreement averted the strikes, which would have caused considerable disruption at international airports.

Most foreign carriers will not fly into gateways that do not have fire and rescue teams on site.

Mr Garrett said industrial action could be on the cards again as EBA negotiations resumed, if the CASA proposals were not taken off the table.

“Our members are calling for it (protected industrial action). They want it,” he said.

In the meantime the UFU is calling on the Prime Minister, the Transport Minister and state and territory politicians to intervene.

“These ‘zombie proposals’ are an unfortunate hangover of the former government’s ideological agenda which sought to cut costs, privatise and deregulate the provision of aviation rescue firefighting services across Australia,” said Mr Garrett.

CASA recently began seeking public comment on its ARFFS proposals with a deadline of August 9.

A CASA spokesman said the potential changes aimed to “better align Australia with international standards and practices”.

“This is a genuine consultation and we encourage aviation fire fighters and members of the aviation community to have their say,” he said.

“We have worked on the draft policy with an industry technical working group that included industry and union representatives.”

Airservices Australia employed airport firefighters and a spokesman said they had been an active participant in a technical working group formed by CASA to consider the proposed changes.

“CASA is currently seeking submissions on the proposals and Airservices will work with CASA and the Department,” he said.