Posted on 08/06/2013 8:32:42 PM PDT by The KG9 Kid
PHOENIX (CBS Las Vegas/AP) — The mother and widow of one of 19 firefighters killed in an Arizona wildfire wants the city of Prescott to provide family survivor benefits reserved for full-time employees.
Deborah Pfingston’s 29-year-old son, Andrew Ashcraft, died June 30 with 18 other members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots while working a wildfire around Yarnell. An investigation into the matter is ongoing.
Pfingston plans to have a news conference on Tuesday in Prescott.
The grieving mother also said city officials promised they would retroactively reclassify the seasonal, temporary employees as permanent so the families could receive additional survivor benefits.
Widow Juliann Ashcraft told CBS News she has been denied lifetime benefits which would help raise her four children and is considering filing a lawsuit against the city to receive them.
“As shocked as I was that my husband went to work and never came home, I’m equally shocked in how the city has treated our family since then,” she said.
CBS News is reporting that all 19 families will receive a one-time federal payment of $328,000 and worker’s compensation, but that the 13 seasonal employees are not entitled to the same benefits that are worth millions that families of full-time employees get.
“I said to them, ‘My husband was a full-time employee, he went to work full-time for you,’” Ashcraft said, “and their response to me was, ‘Perhaps there was a communication issue in your marriage.’”
(Excerpt) Read more at lasvegas.cbslocal.com ...
Anyone not a full-time firefighter should just let that mother burn. Let God put out the fire. Anyone who loses their home and family to a wildfire can go tell it to a full-time insurance agent.
Of course the government union workers MUST ALWAYS GET THEIR BENEFITS!!!
THE PURPLE PEOPLE BEATERS ARE BLEEDING US DRY!!!!!
I don’t think it’s reasonable to give her lifetime benefits based on his seasonal status, but it does seem like the part timers could be indemnified some way to give the next of kin a few years worth of income to get them over the tough part.
As for the mom, I’m not sure what her situation is. Was he supporter her too?
Generally I think of his wife and children in an instance like this.
It seems the city could come up with something to help out. It may ultimately cost the city a few million, but this is a massive loss for the families here.
I hate to sound callous but if they were seasonal or part time they aren’t entitled to the benefits of full time employees.
End of story.
Aren’t there plenty of charities lining up to help these families? Perhaps knowing what a dangerous job they had they could have provided for their families a bit better with life insurance?
The survivors will get social security payments as well.
I’m a little tired of everyone screaming for benefits all the time, I really am. Maybe I sound like a rhymes with witch but there it is.
Oh, surely. Hey, get some new highly-trained-in-concert rapid reaction parachuting smokejumpers in here to replace the last ones we lost.
All we need is a bunch of 19-24 year old volunteers in here to para-jump into a raging Arizona wildfire in 109 degree weather for scarce pay, no benefits, and 100% of the risk all on them.
You go take that side of the street, I'll take this side, and we'll meet back here when each of us has recruited ten, okay?
Lots of people with dangerous jobs don’t get government tax paid lifetime benefits for themselves, their wives, families or anyone else...In fact, many have had their pensions slashed, eliminated and heath care benefits made worthless or dumped all together.
Welcome to the new America. People who work for cities, counties and states better get used to this...It’s coming their way. It will get much worse.
The American decline continues.
The scary part is that this good land of ours is the BEST in the world. What on earth do folks do in third world sewers?
I don’t understand? If I die on the job, my wife gets nothing from my employer, unless there was negligence involved.
These guys weren’t forced to be firefighters. They knew the danger. They were comic-book heroes in their own minds, even giving themselves a Hollywood name.
Public employee unions are bankrupting the country. They have written themselves huge pensions on the backs of taxpayers who have no say in the matter.
Those government pensions ain’t gonna be there. You can steal all the money and property you please, but the corrupt pyramid scheme is going to collapse of its own weight.
Government teat sucking abuse is obscene, but in this case the most cavalier of commentators in this thread need to go check the condition of their home fire extinguishers before popping off with 'Too bad, so sad' about benefits for highly trained volunteer smoke jumpers. Good luck finding any more.
Many gun owners keep a firearm for self-defense since they can't rely on police department responses -- you hear that bravely chest-beat into this forum all the time -- but what I want to know is where's everyone's personal fire truck following that logic.
I'm not even convinced their backyard garden hoses are serviceable.
So you are saying that union firefighters should collect their paychecks but not actually put out fires unless they get exorbitant pay and benefits?
Here’s an idea. If they don’t think they are being compensated adequately, THEY COULD QUIT AND FIND REAL JOBS.
Nobody except the criminal labor unions are forcing them to do anything.
From what I’ve read in other articles all of the 19 worked full-time for the city as Fire Fighters but 13 of the 19 were categorized by the City as “Seasonal” to reduce the city’s insurance premium. The city is going to end up paying more in lawsuits then if they just paid out now.
I’m saying when they all ‘quit to find real jobs’ you can run around with a cheapshit Walmart fire extinguisher putting out the fire on your kid’s backs — God forbid.
And $328K isn’t small change.
America is a volunteer country. There will be plenty of volunteers.
You union goons think that you should be allowed to extort whatever you want from employers, especially government employers.
I say again, if you aren’t being adequately compensated at your job, find another job, or create your own job.
Well, not to be harsh, but I agree with others here. Public employee unions are bankrupting the country.
All while those in the private sector have been abused and basically left to fend for themselves...And it get worse.
People in the government sector are going to get a real taste of what most American have dealt with for the past decade or more.
“Lifetime benefits”??
How about the life of his great-grand kids too?
There should be some limits, when taxpayers are picking up the tab.
How about partial benefits until the kids hit 18?
So you are threatening to set our children on fire if we don't meet your demands?
Um...the families did get $328,000 as a lump sum. Invested wisely that can go a long way.
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