Sadly this seems to be the case the world over. You could say that it is just the case that Governments take advantage of people who love to do what they do, and aren't in it for the money. Even in the US where people pay a fortune for healthcare, Emergency Services workers are still paid crap. Unfortunately, the general public has a skewed version of what's important. Ask them to pay a few hundred (dollars/pounds) each a year extra so that they can have fairly paid people who may one day save their lives, and they'd probably say no. That big screen TV is a much higher priority. That's why so many Firefighters and EMTs work more than one job, just to pay the mortgage.