The Firefighting Industry Agreement expired in June 2021 and negotiations have not significantly progressed. Tasmanian Firefighters are the lowest paid in Australia. While bills are going up by more than 5%, the Tasmanian government is offering Firefighters 2.35% and 2.5% over two years.
Firefighters have asked the Premier to intervene in negotiations and he has not accepted our invitation to meet.
Firefighters are taking action to get negotiations moving forward. The list of current industrial activities in place are listed below:
[All bans are currently suspended]
All members:
- Displaying of UFU or campaign clothing/merch
- Distribution of UFU materials during work time
- Leaving campaign materials at public venues
- Adjusting email signature to include campaign message
- No maintenance of hose
- No TOIL or 1am payments for training for operational capabilities
- No Casual Training Instruction
- Claim overtime for handover at start or end of shift
- Work to rule, claim all allowances, take breaks on time
- No Fire Reports, or AIRS Reports
- No off the desk side projects
- No working shifts at other brigades
- Making comment about TFS/DPFEM to public or media
- No working rostered shifts by NRSW to provide coverage between Mon – Fri (normal hours)
- No briefing notes to DPFEM/Government (including participation for promotional material)
- No facilitating the TasGRN project, attendance at workshops is permitted at this stage
- No participating in multi-agency or external exercises where TFS is not the lead agency
- No participation in Come and Try Days from 4 July 2022
- No external training delivery to Tasmanian government agencies or organisations (Health exempt)
- No practice evacuations
- No Remote Area Team preparation activities, including medicals, fitness and training
- Writing, displaying or maintaining campaign messages on TFS/DPFEM vehicles
- No resetting the fire alarm panel at the following locations:
- Parliament of Tasmania
- 15 Murray Street, Hobart
- No Acting Up, only members with recognised fixed term contracts in place as of 12 August 2022 will continue to act up (no promulgation). This ban does not apply where the overtime list has been exhausted and the person acting up would be entitled to overtime payment.
- All work is restricted on shift except maintaining operational readiness, emergency response, and fire investigation
- No participation in volunteer support, such as award ceremonies and training delivery other than to maintain operational readiness
- No delivery of specialist discipline training, including all training listed as electives in the pay point training schedule
- No on call DO/SO
- No arranging Ministerial visits to TFS facilities
FireComm:
- No sending media releases
- No answering media enquiries
- No following up alarm fault
Building Safety:
- No building audits
- No work other than CORs and COORs