Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) and the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) remain engaged in collective bargaining discussions. The organisation and the union have been engaged in contract negotiations for more than 16 months without reaching settlement since discussions commenced in mid-July 2024.
On Nov. 25, FENZ applied to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) for independent facilitation in its ongoing collective bargaining dispute with the NZPFU. At an ERA hearing held on Nov. 26, the NZPFU objected to evidence provided by FENZ region manager Ron Devlin.
The union argued that information disclosed during bargaining discussions under a without prejudice framework should not be presented in a public forum. “As the information was provided by the parties on a without prejudice basis for the discussions in bargaining, it could not be used in an open forum, but if it was to be use, we wanted to call the Grant Thornton consultant to give evidence in order to ensure the ERA had the correct information,” the NZPFU said.
According to the NZPFU, FENZ chose to retract the statements, eliminating the need for additional witness testimony. Both parties have since submitted written legal arguments, with an ERA determination expected within the coming days.
The parties remain distant on financial matters, with the NZPFU’s recent position reportedly exceeding FENZ’s offer by a factor of three. FENZ has put forward a three-year arrangement providing 6.2% average compensation growth. The proposal would adjust senior firefighter pay from approximately $80,700–$87,400 to $85,800–$92,900, alongside overtime and supplementary compensation averaging $38,823 per year. The organisation asserts this aligns with comparative public sector settlements and reflects historical compensation trends within its workforce.
Over the past 10 years, senior firefighter compensation has grown by 37% cumulatively, the organisation reports, outpacing average wage increases across the broader New Zealand labour market by more than 10 percentage points. FENZ deputy national commander Megan Stiffler said: “There’s a gulf between us at the moment, which is why facilitated bargaining is the next logical step to resolve the dispute and keep our communities safe.” Stiffler further elaborated on the organisation’s negotiating stance. “We’ve approached bargaining in good faith with the goal of reaching a fair, sustainable, and reasonable settlement with the NZPFU,” she said.
The NZPFU has scheduled one-hour work stoppages for Nov. 28 and Dec. 5, both commencing at noon. The union said mediation processes represent a delay tactic and that direct negotiation remains necessary for settlement. “What we need is for FENZ to negotiate rather than continue to hide behind alleged government restrictions as a barrier to settlement,” the NZPFU said.
FENZ has called for the union to abandon the upcoming work action. In a Nov. 27 statement, the organisation asserted that “there is zero point to this strike while the authority considers whether to provide independent facilitation. Going ahead with it needlessly puts community safety at risk.”
FENZ’s financial structure depends substantially on insurance-based revenue streams. During the 2024–2025 period, FENZ received $796.7 million through insurance levies, supplemented by $41.3 million from alternative funding sources. Insurance-derived revenue accounted for roughly 95% of the organisation’s total operational budget. Throughout the compensation dispute with the NZPFU, FENZ referenced budgetary limitations stemming from elevated insurance costs alongside wider cost-of-living pressures experienced across New Zealand.
The organisation’s operational scope encompasses approximately 14,900 staff positions supporting a fleet of 1,300 fire trucks distributed across more than 600 station locations nationwide. During the 2024–2025 fiscal period, the service responded to approximately 89,000 emergency incidents. These operational parameters inform the organisation’s financial positioning during collective bargaining discussions, as the budget constraints directly influence compensation settlement capacity and resource allocation decisions.
