OPSEU/SEFPO in the News Round Up: Forest Fire Workers hold press conference in Timmins; call out false statement by Minister Graydon Smith
October 13, 2023
Forest fire workers represented by OPSEU/SEFPO are calling out Graydon Smith, Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry, for false statements made during a closed-door news conference in Timmins that shut out frontline forest fire workers.Reporters at the Minister’s news conference asked the Minister why he won’t commit to reclassification. In what has become expected of this government, the Minister shared misinformation, saying reclassification was out of his hands. On the contrary, he can address the retention crisis in Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services (AFFES) with a stroke of his pen.Forest fire workers have met with the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry and delivered letters from 13 bases across Ontario, signed by 90% of workers. They shared their personal experiences on the frontlines and urged the Minister to address the retention crisis as soon as possible. The Minister has been ignoring their demands for higher wages to better reflect the risks they take and he shut them out of his announcement because he knew it would fall short of what forest fire workers have been demanding.The workers held their own news conference to demand real solutions and immediate action to resolve the retention crisis in AFFES. Their demands include reclassification – a process to recognize the actual work they do, the dangers they face and pay them appropriately; danger and standby pay; and longer-term, permanent job opportunities.The forest fire workers’ press conference was covered by both local and provincial media outlets. You can read more about the issue and the forest fire workers’ demands below.