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A deal between the Victorian Labor Premier and the militant firefighters' union is threatening to hamper Bill Shorten's push to win seats in his home state.
With many marginal seats either in Labor's sights, or needing to be sand bagged, fears are growing that Premier Daniel Andrews' decision to back in a deal with the United Firefighters Union will damage the ALP campaign.
Mr Andrews' controversial decision has infuriated tens of thousands of volunteers who are panicked that it will undermine their work. The CFA board is "seriously concerned" it will reduce their ability to allocate and manage resources.
Labor's most marginal Victorian seat is McEwen, which covers bushfire-prone areas and has thousands of CFA volunteers. One of the seats the ALP has the most chance of picking up, Corangamite, is also in a high-risk bushfire zone.
McEwen MP Rob Mitchell, a former emergency services volunteer, said he was aware of community concern – but he also said most people in the area could distinguish between state and federal issues.
Mr Mitchell also took aim at Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's pledge to legislate to protect volunteers if elected during a rally in Melbourne on Sunday.
"Turnbull is outright lying to people,"' Mr Mitchell said.
He said the Prime Minister needed to explain how federal laws would comply with the state volunteer act.
Speaking on Monday Mr Turnbull said under the Fair Work Act there was a list of objectionable clauses in the EBA.
He said a re-elected Turnbull government would look to include negative impact on volunteers as an objectionable clause.
He dragged Opposition Leader Bill Shorten into the mess, calling on him to take a stand for volunteers.
"If Mr Shorten really believed in those volunteers – if he believed in supporting the courage of those men and women who were gathered together on the steps of the Victorian Parliament here in Melbourne yesterday – if he believes in supporting them, then he should join with me and agree that we will deal with it and we will fix it," Mr Turnbull said.
At the 2014 state election UFU members campaigned against the Napthine government, including wearing mock uniforms. It is widely accepted that this campaign helped swing votes to Victorian Labor.
A Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria spokesman said any volunteers campaigning in a party-political manner was directly against policy.
Senior strategists are worried that if the current communication strategy in dealing with volunteer angst continues, it would be harder for Labor in places such as Corangamite. However, there is an opportunity to reset the debate once a final deal is settled upon.
Campaigning in Melbourne on Monday, Mr Shorten said he hoped Premier Andrews consulted the volunteer firefighters, just as they have been working with the professional firefighters.
"But it is a state issue," Mr Shorten said. "Much like the industrial arrangements are for police and for other matters, and I would expect the state government to bring the parties together."
