The staff, comprising over 200 members, has demonstrated in front of the Casa Palacio, the Cabildo's headquarters, denouncing the non-compliance with regulations that should have come into force last year. This law would guarantee them supplements for morbidity, toxicity, danger, and arduousness, as well as the possibility of early retirement and specific occupational risk prevention plans for their work.
“"People only remember us when there's a fire. The rest of the year, we are forgotten."
Workers, including Presa and Bravo agents from the Forest Fire Operational Unit (UOFF), currently receive monthly salaries ranging from 1,200 to 1,500 euros. Furthermore, they report chronic delays in payments for locations and mobilizations, forcing them to file supplementary tax returns. For instance, in April of this year, they received payments corresponding to June 2025.
Most of the UOFF staff are permanent seasonal workers, working 10.5 months a year. Despite the danger of their work, which includes using machinery like brush cutters and chainsaws, they receive modest supplements: 30 euros monthly for using forest tools, 60 euros for driving vehicles on forest tracks, and 200 euros for being helicopter-transported. They receive no compensation for using torches in prescribed burns.
The Environment counselor, Raúl García, has indicated that applying the forest firefighter category requires the Government of Canarias to develop the professional categories regulation, a step still pending. Nevertheless, he assures that the Cabildo is managing with the Social Security Treasury the application of new professional codes and early retirement for 16 workers, in addition to drafting a proposal to address salary demands.
