Firefighters threaten 10-hour strikes from 27 November

The New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) has threatened four 10-hour nationwide strikes, beginning on 27 November. The union is in a pay dispute with Fire and Emergency New Zealand, the agency that runs the country's fire service.

According to RNZ, the planned strikes would run weekly from 1pm to 11pm. Union members in 19 towns and cities would strike at the same time. The union said 88 percent of its members voted in favour of the 10-hour strikes. These are threatened strikes, not action that has taken place.

The two sides are far apart on pay. Fire and Emergency said its offer was a 2.5 percent pay rise in the first year and 2.2 percent in the second year. It said the union's claim was for an 18.5 percent increase over two years. The union said 99 percent of its members rejected the offer. Firefighters have not had a pay rise since July 2023.

Fire and Emergency warned that the strikes would create an extreme risk to public safety and could have fatal consequences.

The union has already held a series of shorter strikes. It has held 72 one-hour strikes since October 2025, according to RNZ. In March this year, the union said Fire and Emergency had deducted 10 percent of pay from members taking part in partial strikes.

NZPFU national secretary Wattie Watson said the strikes would be called off if the next government stepped in to help settle bargaining with Fire and Emergency. Bargaining is the term for the negotiations over pay and conditions.