For most people, the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) is synonymous with volunteers protecting communities from bush fires, floods and other emergencies.

What is often less visible is the dedicated workforce that works alongside volunteers to serve the communities in which we live and work.

Every day, staff across the RFS support volunteers, coordinate emergency responses, manage aviation operations, oversee community engagement programs, develop mitigation strategies, maintain operational systems, deliver training, manage fleet and infrastructure, and provide planning and intelligence.

Without these staff, the organisation’s ability to effectively plan for and coordinate emergency operations would be significantly diminished. Fires would take longer to extinguish, recovery would be slower, and the risks to communities would significantly increase.

Our work has evolved significantly since the inception of the Crown Employees (Rural Fires) Award 2002, particularly over the past decade. The responsibilities, expectations and complexity of our roles have increased substantially. New systems, technologies, programs and operational requirements have been introduced, often without corresponding changes to the framework that governs the workforce delivering them.

In many respects, staff are being asked to do far more than the Award originally contemplated and allows for.

It is critical to understand that modernising the Award is not simply an industrial issue. It affects operations, work health and safety, the workforce and, ultimately, community safety.

Happy, supported staff contribute to a positive organisational culture, stronger volunteer support and better operational outcomes. The relationship between staff and volunteers is symbiotic; when one is struggling, the other feels the impact.

For years, the PSA and delegates have advocated for changes to an Award many believe no longer reflects the realities of contemporary emergency service work.
Negotiations and reviews have continued for more than a decade, focusing on matters such as hours of work, overtime, allowances, shift arrangements and incident conditions. These discussions have highlighted the growing gap between historical employment arrangements and the operational demands now placed upon RFS employees.

Importantly, legal action in the Supreme Court pursued by the PSA resulted in a significant outcome regarding the payment of overtime, reinforcing the principle that employees should be properly compensated for work performed.

The challenge is simple: the RFS of today is not the RFS of 20 years ago. Today’s workforce is highly skilled, professionally trained and increasingly specialised. Recognition of these skills through contemporary employment conditions and remuneration is long overdue.

Climate change is increasing the frequency, duration and intensity of natural disasters. Fire seasons are becoming longer and more complex. Major incidents no longer occur in isolation. Staff are increasingly required to work across multiple hazards including bush fires, floods, storms and other emergencies.

The expectations placed upon employees have expanded considerably. Staff must navigate increasingly sophisticated technology platforms, manage growing compliance obligations, respond to heightened community expectations, and support volunteers operating in ever more challenging conditions.

Many employees regularly work extended hours during major incidents, support operations well beyond traditional business hours and manage workloads that fluctuate dramatically depending on operational demands. These expectations are accepted as part of serving the community, but they must be supported by employment conditions that are fair, transparent, reasonable and sustainable.

The Award should recognise the unique nature of emergency service work while ensuring employees are appropriately compensated for the demands they face.
Importantly, this is not just about pay. It is about recognising specialist skills, retaining experienced personnel and attracting the next generation of emergency management professionals. It is about ensuring staff who dedicate their careers to supporting volunteers and protecting communities are not left behind by outdated industrial arrangements.

Across the public sector, organisations compete for skilled professionals in areas such as emergency management, intelligence, risk management, aviation, communications, engineering, technology and community resilience. The RFS is competing in that same market.

When employment conditions fail to keep pace with expectations, recruitment and retention become harder. The loss of experienced personnel has consequences as knowledge walks out the door, relationships built over decades disappear, and operational capability is diminished. Ultimately, communities bear the cost.
An updated Award would provide certainty for both employees and the organisation. It would create a clearer framework for managing operational demands while recognising the realities of modern emergency service delivery.

It would also demonstrate that the contribution of RFS employees is valued.

The RFS’s strength has always been its people. Volunteers are rightly recognised as the backbone of the service, but volunteers rely upon a professional workforce that supports, enables and coordinates their efforts. The relationship between volunteers and staff is not competitive. One cannot succeed without the other.

Just as sporting teams rely on coaches, trainers, analysts and support staff behind the scenes, volunteers rely upon the expertise and dedication of RFS employees to help deliver successful outcomes.

Every hazard reduction burn achieved, every fire trail maintained, every training event delivered, every aircraft dispatched, every hazard complaint investigated, every operational plan and every incident response dispatched reflects the work of dedicated staff working alongside volunteers to keep communities safe.

This environment demands a workforce that is agile, skilled and resilient. That workforce deserves an Award that reflects contemporary expectations and realities. Staff cannot pay bills with goodwill alone.

The staff of the RFS have been neglected by successive governments and past commissioners when it comes to ensuring their employment conditions reflect the increasingly complex and demanding nature of their work. After more than a decade of discussion and review, there is now an opportunity for Commissioner Trent Curtin, Premier Chris Minns, Treasurer Daniel Mookhey and Minister Jihad Dib to right this long-standing wrong and deliver an Award that properly recognises the value of RFS employees. Such reform would not simply benefit staff; it would strengthen the operational capability of the Service and help ensure the RFS remains fit for purpose in meeting the challenges of the 21st century. The question is no longer whether the Award requires updating.

The question is whether the RFS and the NSW Government are serious about investing in the workforce that underpins one of the largest and most respected emergency services in the world.

A quality public safety capability cannot be built solely through new aircraft, shiny new trucks or state-of-the-art facilities. Those investments must be matched by investment in the people who operate them.

A modern Award is not a reward. It is an investment in people, capability and operational readiness. Most importantly, it is an investment in our communities.
Those who work alongside the volunteers protecting our state deserve employment conditions that recognise the complexity, responsibility and commitment required.
The time for modernisation is now.