Ambulances ramped at Frankston Hospital. EVERY 16 seconds a call is received by a triple-0 operator from a Victorian facing a desperate and difficult situation. In most cases within minutes a paramedic is dispatched. As the paramedics race to the scene they don't know what will confront them when they arrive. Someone could be angry and lash out at them, or so affected by drugs or alcohol they are a danger to themselves and others. Sometimes they are suffering from a mental illness and require careful engagement to ensure theirs and the paramedics' safety. Saving lives is a tough job - it requires bravery, skill and commitment. By and large, it is a job that has the unswerving support of the Victorian public. The health system paramedics are working in is widely acknowledged to be in crisis. The Napthine Government has failed to move to address a number of problems that are making the work of paramedics increasingly difficult. The front page of the Herald Sun on July 10 was dramatic proof of this health crisis. Patients crammed on to stretchers waiting hours for beds, while 17 ambulances were queued up and unavailable for callouts to other emergencies. Response times for ambulances have blown out, putting the lives of Victorians at risk. This crisis is having a big impact on the morale of paramedics. A recent survey found that 1500 paramedics - more than half - are planning to quit their jobs in the next five years. Their pay and conditions have slipped to be the lowest in Australia. Victorian paramedics have one of the highest injury rates due to the difficult nature of their jobs. Chronic underfunding of the service by the Napthine Government is to blame. To begin addressing this growing crisis of confidence and morale, Ambulance Employees Australia has submitted a claim to boost the pay of Victorian paramedics to the same level as South Australia and ACT. This amounts to a 30 per cent increase over the next three years. We believe it is long overdue recognition of the difficult and dangerous job that paramedics do on behalf of the Victorian public. It will provide a real boost to the morale of paramedics and kick-start the recovery phase for our health system. The Government's response has been to delay and confuse the public. It has offered a 2.5 per cent pay rise, but with a catch - the removal of key entitlements that would result in a pay cut in real terms. Victorian paramedics are already paid as much as 25 per cent less than those in other states. In South Australia a paramedic with six years' experience has a base rate of $71,500 - in Victoria it is $56,000. Under the Government's offer paramedics will fall even further behind their interstate colleagues. The Victorian Government has the power to fix this. Unfortunately instead of trying to work with paramedics, Premier Denis Napthine and Health Minister David Davis have tried to smear our reputation. Davis has made wild claims about what paramedics earn and the cost of our pay claim to the Victorian Government. In the attack on paramedics last week Davis inflated our pay claim by more than 50 per cent and then produced spurious costings in an attempt to paint us in a bad light. Entry-level paramedics start on $42,700-a-year base rate and when shift penalties are included this rises to $55,300. A paramedic with six or more years' experience is paid a base rate of $56,000 a year, rising to $71,000 to compensate for working at night and on weekends. Paramedics are rostered to work on public holidays, including Christmas Day. They are not paid extra for this work but receive time off in lieu. Paramedics are university-trained with a three-year bachelor degree. Some paramedics earn extra money by working overtime, but staff shortages means they have little choice. Ambulance Victoria did not staff an ambulance across the state about 3000 times in 2012. If paramedics do not volunteer to work extra shifts then the community would not have sufficient ambulance coverage. Every 16 seconds a Victorian reaches out for help from our paramedics - let's show them in their hour of need they have our support. Premier? Steve McGhie is general secretary of Ambulance Employees Australia and has worked as a paramedic and their union for 33 years.