Striking SA firefighters to return from Canada
Plans are being finalised by senior management at Working On Fire to bring back the 300 firefighters sent to Canada last week.
The fighters grabbed international headlines when a video of them bursting into song and dance after arriving at the airport in Canada was circulated. But after a few days tackling the Mount McMurray fire, they've gone on strike complaining about their pay.
WoF spokesperson - Linton Rensburg says senior management has arrived in Alberta and will be returning home with the group.
"The agreement reached with our firefighters was that they will be receiving a daily allowance of R600 while they are in Canada. That amount is over and above their salary or stipend that they will be earning in South Africa which is between R100 and R650 per day. We were obviously shocked to learn that they were now demanding R2000 per day," he said.
Rensburg adds this comes as a huge shock for the organisation as they always deploy emergency support to countries needing assistance.
"It is certainly a huge embarrassment, not only to us but also to the country and the Canadian government. This is something that has never happened before. We have a long and proud history of providing emergency support services to other countries," Rensburg said.
(Supplied photo)