For an hour tomorrow, every professional firefighter in New Zealand will go on strike. It’s never happened before and is the low-point of ongoing conflict between FENZ and the union, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in The Bulletin.

One fire, two accounts

Last night, a huge fire broke out at a scrap metal yard in Christchurch. 55 firefighters and 14 trucks attended. According to a Fire and Emergency NZ (FENZ) spokesman speaking to Stuff, one truck had a problem and could not be used but it wasn’t impacting the fighting of the fire. Accordinging to the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) speaking to 1 News, two trucks broke down and could not be used. The Union’s Facebook page also posted that some of the firefighters involved have worked up to 100 hours this week in order to keep fire stations open. One fire, two accounts and an example of the chasm that’s opened up between FENZ and the NZPFU.

Responding left to volunteers and non-union members

Pending a last-minute agreement, all of the country’s professional firefighters will be on strike tomorrow between 11am and midday. They will not be responding to incidents over that time and there will be a reduced number of people to take calls, leaving volunteer firefighters and executive officers to respond to emergencies. Delays in responding are most likely to be observed in metropolitan areas that don’t have volunteer brigades. It is the first time in New Zealand history that professional firefighters have walked off the job.

Both parties concerned about risk to the public

FENZ deputy national commander Brendan Nally told 1News that he is “deeply concerned for the risk to the public”. Secretary for the NZPFU Joanne ‘Wattie’ Watson​ said that in Auckland, the number of firefighters available to respond tomorrow amounts to “about six firefighters”. FENZ say they’ve offered firefighters a pay rise of between 8% and 19% over two years. The union says it’s not enough and it’s not just about the money but better working conditions. In Timaru, senior station officer Paul Tilsley has said that in order to keep the two stations in the area open, 1600 hours of overtime was worked in July. FENZ disputes claims that there is a staffing shortage within the industry.

Is the creation of a national fire service in 2017 a contributing factor in the dispute?

On Sunday, Stuff’s Andrea Vance took a deeper look at the strike, concluding that its genesis lies in structural issues following the 2017 amalgamation of 40 organisations into one national fire service. Vance doesn’t dispute the need to address the many issues raised by the union and points out they go to the “wider societal problem of under-valuing and supporting frontline workers”. But Vance also writes that some described the pre-2017 structure as a volunteer fire service, run by professionals, for professional firefighters. “Among volunteers there are suspicions this dispute is about a once-powerful union needing a victory to remain relevant to its members,” she writes. It’s worth a read as it also delves into the political ramifications of the dispute and what some would argue is the strange way our emergency services are funded.