After Bushfire Volunteers wrote to Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan to brief him with our volunteer compensation policy, representatives of other volunteer peak bodies were invited to join the Premier, our President Dave Gossage, Emergency Services Minister Hon Fran Logan MLA and DFES Commissioner Darren Klemm to discuss the State Government’s response to the Commonwealth Government’s volunteer compensation scheme.
Premier Mark McGowan led the hour-long discussion, genuinely seeking feedback about the Federal Government’s offer to provide compensation payments to fire volunteers for extended periods of service and suggestion of a Royal Commission.
The State Committee of Bushfire Volunteers is very proud to have had the foresight to develop a clear and simple policy about the compensation of emergency service volunteers last year and was pleased to hear other peak bodies support and reinforce the key components of our policy during the meeting.
We thank the Premier for taking the time to meet with Bushfire Volunteers and our colleagues from the peak bodies of other volunteer services.
