Maintaining of voluntary firefighters in Portugal José Maria Oliveira Ferreira, ENB Working Group on Voluntary Fire Brigades System Integration Into Existing Fire&rescue Systems – Sintra, 30 May 2018
Portuguese Fire Brigades 8 Professional Fire Brigades 18 Municipal Fire Brigades Volunteer Fire Brigades 430 Private Fire Brigades 14 470 Fire Brigades 30.000 Firefighters
Portuguese Firefighters Social Status Legal Regime of Portuguese Firefighters • Decree-Law No. 241/2007 • LAW nº53/2013 • Ordinance no. 32-A / 2014
Decree-Law No. 241/2007 (249/2012) (partial translation) Article 6 Benefits in education 1 – Professional, mixed or voluntary Firefighters shall be granted the following advantages; a) Relief of absences to classes motivated by the presence in operational activity, when required by the commander of the fire brigade; b) Carry out, on a date in accordance with the teacher or with the internal rules of the educational establishment, the written tests that have not been able to attend proven by reason of the fulfillment of operational activity.
3 - Voluntary firefighters of the command and active staff with at least two years of effective service, are entitled to reimbursement of tuition and fees for attending secondary school or public higher education, if they pass in the previous academic year, except if it is the beginning of the course. 6 - The descendants of deceased firemen, injured in service or victims of illness or permanent disability, contracted or aggravated in service or because of it, have the following advantages: a) Priority, in equality circumstances and skills in entering kindergartens, pre-school establishments and similar; b) Allocation of an allowance corresponding to the enrollment rate in a pre-school institution of the public network or the private network;
c) Reimbursement of fees and registration fees paid for the attendance of public secondary or higher education, and for this purpose must prove the firefighter's quality of the parent, as well as the achievement in the previous academic year, except in the case of the beginning of the respective course; 7 - The descendants of firefighters with at least 15 years of service are entitled to reimbursement of the registration fee paid for attending public higher education provided they have pass in the previous academic year, except if it is the beginning of the course.
Article 7 Legal representation 1 - Firefighters are entitled to legal assistance and patronage in legal proceedings in which they are sued or plaintiffs for facts that occur during the exercise of their functions. 2 - The right to assistance and to the legal patronage referred to in the previous number are regulated in a proper diploma. Article 8 Blood price pension 1 - The State guarantees to the families of volunteer firefighters who die, by accident occurred in the exercise of the activity of fireman or by illness contracted or aggravated in their performance, or because of it, a pension of blood price, according to the current regime for Public Administration workers.
Article 10 Increase in length of service for retirement purposes 1 - The length of service provided by full-time professional firefighters benefits from a 15% increase for retirement purposes. Article 11 Pension bonus 1 - Voluntary firefighters of the executive and managerial staff are entitled to a pension bonus, (…) when they are covered by the contributory social security schemes.
Article 13 Voluntary social insurance Can benefit from the voluntary social insurance scheme referred to in the previous article the firefighter who fulfills, cumulatively, the following requirements: a) Be over 18 years of age; b) Be in the position of activity in the command or active boards; c) To have performed the activity of voluntary firefighter, in the command or active boards, in the immediately previous 12 months; d) Not be covered by compulsory social protection scheme by the simultaneous exercise of professional activity; e) Not in a situation that determines the right to protection in unemployment situation; f) Not to be a pensioner from public administration or any social security scheme.
Article 19 Medical and medicine assistance 1 - In cases of accident or illness that has been proven to be contracted or aggravated in service, voluntary firefighters may receive medical and medicine assistance free of charge, through the Firefighter Social Protection Fund, in the part not covered by other entities, by law or by contract agreement. 2 - The medical and medicine assistance provided for in the previous number covers: a) Medical specialties; b) Diagnostic auxiliary elements; c) Medical and surgical costs; d) Contribution to the beneficiary in hospitalization expenses; e) Thermal treatments; f) Prostheses; g) Physiotherapy; h) Functional recovery.
Article 20 Subsidies for recovery of expenses 1 - In order to cover recovery costs, in the case of the disabled, mentally, sensorial or speech disabled, adequate subsidies are guaranteed through the Social Protection Fund of the Firefighter, in accordance with the respective regulations. Article 21 Medical health surveillance Without prejudice the provision of fire-fighting facilities for the conduct of medical and health inspections, which are essential for the performance of the fire-fighter's duties, both at the time of admission and during the various stages of career progression, periodic health plans provided for in line g) of number 1 of article 5 of this Decree-Law.
Article 26 Absences for the exercise of operational activity 1 - Voluntary firefighters of the command and active staff, may be absent from work for the performance of missions attributed to the fire brigades to which they belong, including the attendance of training courses, without loss of remuneration or any other rights and privileges, provided that the number of absences does not exceed, on average, three days per month. (…) 4 - For the purpose of attending training courses at the National Fire School, volunteer firefighters have the right to miss work, without loss of rights, up to a maximum of 15 days per year, with the respective employers compensating for the wages paid for the days of work lost.
LAW nº53/2013 Article 2 Individual Income Tax 7 - The Individual Income Tax (IRS)does not charge in compensation and subsidies related to voluntary activity, made available to firefighters by the National Civil Protection Authority and paid by the respective fire brigade entities, within the scope of the special firefighting device and in accordance with its legal framework.
Ordinance no. 32-A / 2014 Article 2 Operational service 2 - The permanence of the firefighters in the active framework, as well as the gratification of the rights, benefits and privileges provided for in the respective legal regime, depends on the compliance with the minimum mandatory time of operational service provided in this ordinance.
Official Firefighter's Career Article 3 Operational Service of firefighter officer 1 - The operational service of the elements integrated in the career of firefighter Officer consists of the exercise of the command, leadership, as well as in the activities of staff in the following areas: a) Planning, Operations and Information; b) Personnel and Instruction; c) Logistics and Special Means; d) Communications. 2 - In addition to the service provided for in the preceding paragraph, the fire officer shall perform operational service in the activities of rescue, picket, drill and exercise provided for in paragraphs a), b) and c) of article 5 of this ordinance. 3 - The fire officer is also responsible for ministering and receiving instruction.
Official Firefighter's Career Article 4 Mandatory minimum service time of the official firefighter The official firefighter is required to comply with a minimum of 200 hours of operational service per year, of which minimum, 160 hours correspond to the planned activities in paragraphs 1 and 2 of the previous article and at least 40 hours correspond to the instruction activity.
Volunteer Firefighter Career Article 5 Operational service of Volunteer firefighter The operational service of the elements integrated in the volunteer firefighter career consists of the following activities: a) Assistance: the emergency activity, of relief to the population, developed in the event of fire, floods, landslides and, generally, in case of accidents, rescue of shipwrecks, underwater searches and pre-hospital; b) Picket: the readiness activity integrating prevention and preparedness forces prepared to occur in emergency situations; c) Simulacrum or exercise: the activity of training and simulation of occurrences, to improving the proficiency of the firemen and evaluating procedures and plans; d) Instruction: activity aimed to maintain the individual and collective effectiveness of staff including acquiring or delivering knowledge within the mission of the fire department.
Article 6 Mandatory minimum service time of the volunteer firefighter The volunteer firefighter is obliged to comply with a minimum of 200 hours of operational service per year, of which at least 160 hours correspond to the activities set forth in a), b) and c) of the previous article and, at least, 40 hours correspond to instructional activity.
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