The United Fire Brigades' Association wants ACC coverage for volunteer firefighters, not just for paid firefighters.

There are 13 and a half thousand firefighters in New Zealand, and 11 and a half thousand of those are volunteers.

ACC would cover the likes of work-related cancer claims and post-traumatic stress disorder.

The association's CEO, Bill Butzbach told Kate Hawkesby a fire doesn't make a distinction between a paid or volunteer worker and neither should ACC.

“There's no difference between a volunteer fire or a paid fire or road accident for that matter, so it's exactly the same work and volunteers do their fair share of that."

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