Unions say feds bleeding firefighters

As wildfire season begins, critics say political leaders need to address crisis

- MARK RAMZY

Noah Freedman, a wildland firefighter in Ontario, is among those calling on Ottawa to change how wildland firefighters are classified to improve working conditions and reflect the difficulties they face.

At 27, Noah Freedman is among the most experienced wildland firefighters in his unit. In just eight years on the job, he's become a local union executive and a fire crew leader.

It's a feat that would have been unheard of a few decades ago, he says, but after years of low wages, few benefits and a climate crisis that is making weather disasters more extreme, a grave retention crisis has placed a heavy burden on those on the front lines protecting Canadians from forest fires, and forcing those who stick around to step up.

That's why Freedman believes the clock is ticking for political leaders to address this crisis as another busy wildfire season starts. He's not alone: New Democrats, Conservatives and several unions are calling on the Trudeau government to take the lead and make changes to how wildland firefighters are classified by the federal government to improve their working conditions and reflect the growing difficulties they face in their jobs.

"None of us here in this job exist for the money," Freedman told the Star. "But that doesn't mean that we're not struggling to survive and to justify these sacrifices to our families and to our loved ones." Although wildland firefighters are provincially regulated, a technical decision in Canada's federal job classification system excludes them from jobs deemed to be in "public safety," affecting their standing under the federal Income Tax Act and directly leading to lower pensions and later retirements.

They are considered "silviculture and forestry workers" rather than "firefighters" like their colleagues working in municipalities across the country, angering many in the field who put their lives in danger every year fighting wildfires.