According to News24 the firefighters’ demands for overtime pay is being referred to arbitration.
According to Robert Mulaudzi, spokesperson for Joburg Emergency Medical Services, firefighters work 48 hours a week, with four-day shifts of two days on and two days off.
To make up the 48 hours, firefighters work an extra two hours a day but now they want to be paid for the extra hours they work. Firefighters are now only prepared to work a 40 hour week, unless they are paid overtime for their extra hours.
Station commanders, supervisors and managers, who are usually station-bound, are now being forced to respond to call-outs during the times the firefighters refuse to work.
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