Give firefighters benefits

The fire season is winding down and the praise for the firefighters will end. What most people don’t understand is many of the federal firefighters are seasonal temporary workers. The Forest Service hires around 15,000 every summer, most of them firefighters and the ones that are not are trained and expected to help. Before the ACA they received no benefits such as health coverage. When the ACA was implemented, the union fought and got the agency to offer them coverage with agency subsidies. Like those with permanent jobs receive, they lose it when they are laid off.

Now with the executive order Trump signed, they won’t even have it when they are protecting your property from a wildfire. He also signed an order removing the requirement for federal agencies to deal with their unions.

Instead of praising them and thanking them, how about contacting your congressional representative and urging them to offer these workers what everyone deserves. I have known federal firefighters that have been doing this for over 30 years as temporaries. Except for the leadership positions, even hotshot crews are mostly temporaries. Instead of giving massive tax breaks to the rich, how about funding permanent jobs for these firefighters?

Ron Angel

Cocolalla, Idaho