FRV firefighters paid $71.8m in overtime: an average of $20,112 each

The carve-up of Victoria’s fire services has exposed the massive cost of the state’s union-controlled Fire Rescue Victoria.

Minister for Emergency Services, Jaclyn Symes. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Crosling

Fire Rescue Victoria’s 3570 operational staff and firefighters took home an average $20,112 in overtime in 2020-21, according to the new service’s first annual report tabled in parliament last week.

In the midst of Covid lockdowns, Victorian taxpayers forked out $71.8 million to cover FRV’s overtime bill during its first year of operation, with the total wages bill topping $756m.

All up FRV’s 3570 operational team, plus 590 support staff, cost an average of $181,730 each to employ.

FRV was formed on July 1 last year, after the Andrews Government controversially stripped the CFA of 38 stations and merged all of its career staff with the MFB to form the new service.

The carve-up was widely seen as delivering on a Labor Government’s promise to grant the United Firefighters Union a lucrative new enterprise agreement that gave it power of veto over the new FRV service’s staffing, resourcing and recruitment, which had been rejected by former Emergency Services Minister Jane Garrett, the CFA’s board and executive, who all resigned.

After losing most of its operational staff and 38 outer metropolitan and regional stations, the CFA has been forced to second 229 of its former assistant chiefs and commanders back from FRV.

These seconded staff appear as a line item in the FRV 2020-21 report as costing $82.8m.

The merger has resulted in FRV’s expenses reaching $918m, of which $860m is covered by Victorian taxpayers, while the CFA’s 2020-21 expenses totalled $474.5m.

Prior to the merger the combined costs of the two services was $1.28 billion (MFB $551.8m plus CFA $736.7m). Now it has climbed to $1.39 billion, an 8.6 per cent increase.

The Weekly Times has previously reported just how half the UFU members get the lion’s share of the overtime payments.

Meanwhile CFA volunteers are driving the oldest firefighting fleet in Australia.

Western Victoria Merino Group CFA volunteer Wayne Munro said if the government maintained the current low rate of just $12m a year in truck funding it would take 70 years to replace them all.

He said “you can’t expect anything else but a blowout” in FRV costs, given the generosity of its enterprise agreement with the union.

“(But) my greatest fear is what it means for future funding of the CFA and how it will deal with WorkSafe risks with such an antiquated fleet.”

Benalla CFA volunteer Jack Harrison said of the 19 trucks in the group’s territory three of them were at least 30 years old.

“More money needs to go into truck replacement,” Mr Harrison said.

FRV’s 2020-21 overtime bill for operational staff

Recall overtime $21,624,108

Maintain strength overtime $10,375,322

Fire call $1,780,274

Muster and dismissed $1,061,540

Standby and dismissed $340,175

Excess travel $3,433,936

Other $33,197,645 (no detail)

Total overtime $71,813,000

FRV-UFU enterprise agreement overtime clauses (just three examples from the 777-page document)

Clause 128.2 An employee recalled to work overtime shall be paid for a minimum of four hours’ work at the rate of double time per hour. They shall not be required to work the full four hours if the job they were recalled to perform is completed within a shorter period.

Clause 128.4 An employee recalled to work overtime shall be paid travelling time, at ordinary rates, except on Sundays and public holidays when time and one half apply. In addition a payment of $1.31 per kilometre or part thereof, shall be made in respect of the distance travelled from home to work and return.

Clause 128.5 An employee on shift work who is retained on duty, at the conclusion of a rostered shift for 60 minutes or more shall be paid a minimum of four hours at double time, provided that if the work to be done is completed within four hours, the employee need not stay for the full four hours.