Ambulancemen's union threatens protest over paramedics' subsidy
New Year campaign for first increase in rate of subsidy paid to trained paramedics since 1988
An ambulancemen's union has threatened to stage a protest on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, saying the Fire Services Department does not give due recognition to trained paramedics.
The union is seeking increased subsidies and the creation of a new rank so they can be promoted to reflect their training. It also wants similarly trained junior crew to be rewarded.
Ambulancemen began being trained as paramedics - including administering injections, drips and some emergency medicine - in 1991 so they could provide emergency aid before taking patients to hospital. By 2005, each ambulance was required to have at least one trained paramedic on board.
They receive a monthly subsidy of HK$1,500 but are dissatisfied that the rate has not changed since 1998, the union says.
"The current subsidy level cannot fully reflect what we have devoted to our job, our responsibilities and our hard work," Chan Shi-ki, chairman of the Fire Services Department Ambulancemen's Union, said.
The union is asking its members to display banners of their demands on ambulances on December 31 and January 1.
If the department fails to respond, the union will not rule out another protest or a request for about 200 officers to stop providing paramedic services.
