Union commanders hold sway over CFA volunteers

The new CFA will still be a union-controlled body, writes Peter Hunt.

Hands on: Volunteers failed to stop the United Firefighters Union taking control of the CFA, despite two years of campaigning. Picture: Jason Sammon

THE Andrews Government’s claim that the CFA will become a “volunteer-only” service from July 1 has been exposed as a myth, following revelations it will still be run by 229 United Firefighters Union assistant chiefs and commanders.

Under a major restructure of Victoria’s fire services, all the CFA’s operational staff and 38 career and integrated stations will be merged with the MFB to form the new career-only service Fire Rescue Victoria.

Premier Daniel Andrews and his ministers have repeatedly stated the reforms transform the CFA into a “volunteer-only firefighting service”.

But a copy of the recently released restructure model shows the CFA will have to second 229 FRV staff to run most of the CFA’s operations, including 96 commanders, 40 assistant chief fire officers, six community safety officers, plus 87 instructors and supervisors.

The CFA will have to source all operational staff from FRV, whose staff must meet registration standards set by a committee of four, including two UFU members, an academic and a ministerial appointee.

The Act states: “A person cannot be engaged as an officer or employee of FRV … unless the person meets the registration requirements (however described) specified by the Firefighters Registration Board”.

The CFA top brass will not even have the choice to select the best FRV staff for the job, with the Act stating: “the chief officer of the CFA must agree to a particular officer or employee being made available”.

Even more concerning is that all seconded FRV staff will be subject to a new enterprise agreement, modelled on the one the Andrews Government battled and failed to implement with the CFA over the past three years.

The original EA was opposed in 2016 by the then CFA chief, board and Emergency Services Minister Jane Garrett, all of whom were forced out or resigned under pressure from Premier Andrews and his deputy James Merlino.

Eventually the Federal Government drafted amendments to the Fair Work Act that blocked any EA that had negative impacts on volunteers.

But the Andrews Government then broke the deadlock by splitting the CFA, so that it could put all paid staff in FRV under a new EA.

The new FRV EA is modelled on the failed CFA version, which means the UFU can veto all major decisions on staffing, instructors’ hours of work, placement and training.

Peter Hunt is The Weekly Times senior reporter

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