The forestry department started a two-hour strike on Thursday morning, protesting against ongoing understaffing at the department, though the environment ministry announced on Wednesday that 13 new positions for forestry officials will be created to fight fires.
The protest will continue until 10.30am, when the budget of the agriculture and environment ministry will be discussed at the House.
The department said it will take the necessary steps to resolve the problem which should be solved by filling empty posts and reinstating positions which were abolished from 2012 until 2015.
“We regret to see that there has been no action in this direction, and we are forced to proceed with a two-hour warning work stoppage,” an announcement from the department said.
The employees will march to the finance ministry after their protest outside the House.
According to the statement, at present the situation is dangerous as the department is responsible for the management of forests and also for the prevention and fighting of forest fires, something they are left to carry out while seriously understaffed.
To be effective, more staff are needed and there needs to be a movement away from the exhausting and dangerous 60 to 70-hour working week which is in place now.
If the problem persists, the employees will step up measures, the statement concluded.
In March this year, the department warned that current staffing levels were worse than in 2016, when the fires of Soleas and Argakas destroyed huge forested areas.
A failure to upgrade research and education programmes has left the country without adequate means to implement modern and effective approaches to the management and protection of forests, the department said at the time.
Just two weeks ago, seven separate fires caused by arson in the Akamas area burned a total of 70 hectares of pine trees, shrubs and wild vegetation in one day before the fire service and the forestry department managed to bring them under control after nine hours.
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