Firefighters push on with strike as negotiations continue to drag
Saturday, 13 December 2025
Paid firefighters are continuing their fight to secure better pay and reliable trucks but say they are now having to lobby to keep jobs on the front line as well.
Fire and Emergency NZ has been in bargaining with the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union since October as paid crews ask for an increase in remuneration, as well a modern fleet they can rely on to save people’s lives.
Palmerston North union president Tony Sealey said at one point the negotiations looked promising, but figures provided by FENZ during bargaining were not backed up with costings or breakdowns, and when the union asked for more information this was denied.
The two parties then met for bargaining again on Monday and Tuesday and this was facilitated by the Employment Relations Authority.
“It didn’t go great - FENZ withheld things and it just seemed disingenuous.”
With little progress made crews walked off the job again for an hour on Friday and Sealey said there would likely be industrial action every Friday until at least Boxing Day.
The negotiations had largely focused on the “dire” conditions firefighters said they were being forced to work in, which included low wages, recruitment issues and failing appliances.
Sealey said their frontline truck was 26 years old and he disputed claims from FENZ that it had invested $20 million in the country’s fleet.
“We would like to know where the 27 trucks are they say they have added … career staff operate the heavy aerials, the type 3 trucks and the rescue tenders - we have not seen a single new one of those in New Zealand in eight years.”
Sealey said the narrative that volunteer firefighters served most of the country was incorrect as it was career crews who responded to 80% of the calls that came in.
“It’s quite hard - we don’t want the public to turn on us but if we are not out here taking industrial action, fighting for this, then they won’t know.”
Since negotiations began, FENZ had offered unionised firefighters a 6.2% pay increase over three years, increasing an average senior firefighter’s annual pay from about $87,400 to $92,900 at the end of the period.
This excluded overtime or allowances, which added an average $38,800 to their annual remuneration.
Sealey said firefighters were upset at how they were being treated by FENZ and this included some “half-truth” comments made in the media.
“We’re fighting fatigue and failing equipment and morale is low - it’s extremely frustrating.”
FENZ deputy national commander Megan Stiffler said the pay offer was a fair and sustainable increase.
'We value our people, which is why over the past decade average senior firefighter pay has cumulatively increased by 37% - more than 10% above the average increase for all workers.'
She said each time a strike took place it put new Zealanders at risk.
'This is rolling the dice … we’ve urged the union repeatedly to call off their strikes because there is no good reason for continuing to put the community in harm’s way while both parties are in facilitation.'
She said after the parties met earlier in the week the “logical step forward” was reaching an agreement.
“We participated in good faith … the facilitation process is ongoing, and we continue to see this as the best avenue for parties to reach agreement.”
She said calls were still answered during the one-hour strike, but incidents such as minor private alarms, small rubbish fires, traffic management, and animal rescues would not be responded to.
Hato Hone St John was also told volunteer crews would not respond to medical calls outside their patch.
Stiffler said the more than 11,800 volunteers were not affected by the strike action.