11 October 2026
Victorian firefighters will rally outside the electorate offices of Emergency Services Minister Paul Edbrooke and Premier Ben Carroll this week after the State Government and Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) collapsed negotiations for a new Operational Staff Agreement.
The United Firefighters Union (UFU) has condemned the breakdown, accusing the Carroll Labor Government of frustrating attempts to reach an agreement while pursuing legal arguments that threaten longstanding firefighter safety protections.
UFU Victorian Branch Secretary Peter Marshall said negotiators had made extensive efforts to accommodate the Government’s concerns.
“Every time we resolved one issue, the Government raised another. It became increasingly clear they were more interested in delaying firefighters’ campaign than reaching an agreement,” Mr Marshall said.
LABOR REPEATING NAPTHINE LIBERAL GOVERNMENT ATTACKS ON FIREFIGHTERS
On 4 September, legal submissions filed on behalf of Minister Edbrooke advanced constitutional arguments challenging critical firefighter employment protections.
The UFU says these arguments repeat and extend those used by the former Napthine Liberal Government in 2013, through the same law firm, Clayton Utz.
The challenged provisions include minimum staffing, classification structures, rostering, dispute resolution and consultation over safety and equipment.
“Paul Edbrooke is a former firefighter. He knows why these protections exist, yet his Government is using the same legal arguments as the Napthine Liberal Government to attack them,” Mr Marshall said.
The UFU warns that, if successful, these arguments could remove enforceable minimum staffing protections, leaving critical staffing decisions to the same FRV management that is responsible for 40+ appliances off the road and unavailable each week.
“Minimum staffing is not a bargaining chip. It is fundamental to firefighter safety and protecting the Victorian community.”
FIREFIGHTERS TAKE THEIR FIGHT TO THE GOVERNMENT
Firefighters will escalate their campaign with two rallies this week:
MONDAY 12 OCTOBER – 10:30 AM
Minister Paul Edbrooke’s electorate office, Beach St, Frankston.
TUESDAY 13 OCTOBER – 10:30 AM
Premier Ben Carroll’s electorate office, Keilor Rd, Niddrie.
“Firefighters have endured years without a general pay rise, ageing fire trucks and ongoing resource shortages. Now this Government wants to undermine the conditions that keep them safe,” Mr Marshall said.
“Premier Carroll and Minister Edbrooke cannot claim to support firefighters while seeking to gut their safety protections.”
“Firefighters will not stand by while decades of hard-won conditions are stripped away. We will take this fight directly to the Government.”
Media enquiries: Nathan Murphy – 0427 087 833