Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) is warning that each one-hour strike by paid firefighters affects public safety as the dispute with the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) continues under facilitation.
Fire and Emergency deputy national commander Megan Stiffler said every stoppage by NZPFU members has consequences for how incidents are managed. “This is rolling the dice on people’s safety. We’ve urged the NZPFU 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.
The strikes relate to bargaining over the NZPFU collective employment agreement for paid firefighters. The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) referred the parties to facilitation on Dec. 5. Sessions were held on Dec. 9 and 10, and the process is ongoing.
Between 12pm and 1pm on Dec. 12, the period of the latest strike, FENZ received 22 incident calls nationwide. Twelve incidents occurred in locations where the one-hour stoppage applied. According to FENZ, six of those 12 were fire alarm activations that did not lead to a fire. The other incidents involved two reports of smoke seen by members of the public that did not result in confirmed fires, two medical emergencies, a small residential gas leak, and a minor backyard fire.
The backyard fire in Te Teko was extinguished by a volunteer crew from Kawerau. Hato Hone St John responded to the medical emergencies under arrangements put in place for the industrial action. Stiffler thanked personnel involved in maintaining cover during the stoppage. “I want to thank our 11,800 volunteers across the country, and their employers for supporting them to respond over [the] strike hour. I would also like to thank our Operational Commanders and Communication Centre Managers, who contributed to the response,” she said.
FENZ said it will keep answering 111 calls throughout any strike period and will continue to respond to fires in affected areas, but said responses “will be delayed.” Volunteers will be dispatched from their local stations as they are when there are multiple simultaneous emergencies, although travel times may extend response intervals.
FENZ has indicated that during the one-hour stoppages, it may not attend some lower-priority calls in cities and towns where paid crews are on strike. These can include private fire alarms where there is no sign of fire, small rubbish fires, assistance with traffic management, and animal rescues. Stiffler said this approach is intended to ensure “our resources are focused where they are needed most.” The agency has also advised Hato Hone St John and Wellington Free Ambulance that volunteer fire crews will not respond to medical calls outside their usual areas during the strike hour.
Stiffler has urged businesses and residents to adjust their precautions during notified strike periods, particularly in places primarily served by paid firefighters. Businesses are being asked to review tasks that could create ignition sources and to ensure tenants or staff understand evacuation procedures. For the public, FENZ is advising early evacuation if a fire occurs and adherence to basic safety steps. FENZ is also encouraging checks of smoke alarms and household escape plans. Stiffler noted that “the vast majority of communities are served by our more than 11,800 volunteers in nearly 600 stations across New Zealand, who will respond as usual.”
The wider dispute covers pay, resourcing, and workplace issues. FENZ’s last public offer before facilitation was a 6.2% pay increase over three years for paid firefighters. The agency says this would move average senior firefighter base remuneration from about $80,700–$87,400 to $85,800–$92,900, excluding overtime and allowances, and that overtime and other allowances currently add an average of $38,800 to annual pay. It has described the offer as “fair, sustainable, and reasonable, and in line with other settlements across the public service.” FENZ has also highlighted capital and operating spending, including fleet replacement, station upgrades, and training programmes, and says more than 90% of its $857.9 million operating budget for 2025/26 is directed to frontline operations and supporting roles.
The NZPFU has taken a different view in communications to members. The union says it will attend facilitation “in good faith, as we have all bargaining,” but has challenged FENZ’s public statements. NZPFU national secretary Wattie Watson alleged that FENZ “continues to put false information in the public arena” and said the union would “use this opportunity to expose any such dishonesty before the authority member.” Watson referred to “distrust and the plummeting morale in the workplace,” and said a pay settlement on its own would not repair internal relationships.
For the insurance industry, the standoff is tied directly to how FENZ is financed. The agency relies on insurance-based levies for the bulk of its operating income, with about 95% collected through charges on home, contents, and motor policies, and the balance sourced from other government and non-levy income streams. FENZ currently has a workforce of roughly 14,900 people, operates a fleet of about 1,300 fire appliances across close to 600 stations, and attends in the region of 89,000 incidents each year. If operating expenditure were to rise materially and persistently, it could eventually put upward pressure on the fire and emergency levies built into property and vehicle insurance premiums.
