At parliament, Highlands CFA captain David Webb, CFA group officer David Hamilton and Gooram CFA captain Michael Stubbe met with State Member for Euroa Annabelle Cleeland to discuss issues faced by volunteers across the state.
They said a lack of administrative support had left volunteers shouldering more of the work needed to keep their brigades functioning.
“These volunteers came to parliament this week because they are frustrated, and they have every right to be,” Ms Cleeland said.
“These are people who put their hands up to protect their communities.
“They should be spending their time training, preparing and responding to emergencies, not fighting through unnecessary administration and red tape because the support around them has been stripped away.”
Operation Richmond is an IBAC investigation into allegations of corrupt conduct relating to the negotiation of enterprise bargaining agreements for the CFA and Metropolitan Fire Brigade.
The investigation examined the Victorian Government’s handling of negotiations with the United Firefighters Union and found deficiencies in behaviour, systems, policies and controls.
IBAC also found the UFU secretary had exerted influence over the government during the negotiations.
“We cannot look at Operation Richmond as something that happened a decade ago and simply move on,” Ms Cleeland said.
“The consequences of those decisions have shaped our fire services and are still being felt by the volunteers who have to make the system work every day.”
Ms Cleeland said the CFA was not simply another government agency.
“It is a volunteer organisation built on people giving their time to protect their communities,” she said.
“Every piece of administration that is pushed on to a volunteer is time taken away from their family, their farm, their business or their training.”
She said the three volunteers visited Victoria Parliament because they cared deeply about the CFA and the communities they served.
“Their message was simple: support the volunteers, strengthen the CFA and stop making it harder for them to protect regional Victoria,” Ms Cleeland said.
