VFBV

Truth and consequence 
By Adam Barnett, VFBV Chief Executive Officer 

On 28 November, the Fire Services Implementation Monitor’s (FSIM) Annual Report was tabled in Parliament. The FSIM was established as an independent entity in 2020 under section 122 of the Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) Act to provide assurance to government and the community on progress on the government’s fire service reforms.

In his fourth Annual Report, the monitor - the Hon. Niall Blair – provides a thorough assessment of progress against the government’s implementation plan. Findings two, three and four are particularly damning and deal with the long standing systemic issues within FRV’s complex consultation and industrial arena, the impacts this has on all joint interoperability initiatives between CFA and FRV, and the devastating impact of the secondment arrangements that have resulted in the CFA Chief Officer’s inability to manage his seconded workforce and the resulting long-term vacancies.

In slamming the secondment arrangements, the monitor concludes that in his opinion and the unanimous opinion of senior leaders of both CFA and FRV, that the arrangements are not working, have not worked for quite some time and in fact will never work.

And while these findings do not come as a surprise to VFBV which has been the canary in the coalmine about these issues for years, these findings from an independent monitor herald a crossroads for the Victorian Government.

Under the secondment agreement, FRV is contractually required to supply CFA with 45 Assistant Chief Fire Officers, and 96 Commanders. As you know, these are key positions and are critical to CFA’s ability to perform its role. They also make up the overwhelming majority of the Chief Officer’s paid workforce and chain of command.

The monitor has reported that on average in any given week there are at least 17 senior vacancies amongst the Assistant Chief Fire Officer and Commander pools each week. He also finds that at its worst, there can be up to 33 vacancies in a week, accounting for more than 20% of CFA’s paid operational workforce.

Confirmation of widespread gaps and vacancies comes as very little surprise to many brigades which have been consistently and frequently reporting these shortages and gaps of support that they are now routinely having to deal with.

One of the largest impacts on volunteers has been the cascading flow-on effects from these vacancies that has created significant churn and upheaval across the ACFO and Commander pool. Brigades have told us that some districts have cycled through up to eight different ACFOs in a single calendar year. Do not underestimate the disruption and havoc this plays across an entire District, and the damage done to relationships and business continuity.

These are alarming figures as we head into Victoria’s fire danger period. When discussing these arrangements, I urge members to clearly separate criticisms of the secondment arrangements from the people.

I want to make it very clear that our attacks on the secondment arrangements are in no way a reflection on the secondees themselves. Rather, they are a reflection on the misguided arrangements that set our secondees up to fail in the first place.

We absolutely respect and support each of the individual secondees loaned from FRV to CFA, and have great empathy for the impossible position they are often put in requiring them to straddle two significantly different organisational cultures, two entirely separate chains of command, and unacceptably high vacancy rates from unfilled positions which pushes these brave men and women to exhaustion as they try to cover empty positions while trying to protect themselves from burnout. We back our secondees and support them, and demand that they be treated better.

Under the arrangements, the CFA Chief Officer is forced to rely on 94% of his operational chain of command to be seconded from a different organisation. In fact, the Chief is left with only nine Deputy Chief Officers reporting directly to him, with all the remaining 141 uniformed officers in his chain of command forced to be seconded from FRV. At times, the Chief does not even get the chance to choose which ones.

In addition, the agreement obliges FRV to provide 53 instructors, and 29 training ground supervisors. In total, FRV is contractually required to supply CFA with 223 seconded officers.

Despite being contractually obliged to fill these positions, when seconded positions are not filled, FRV pocket the savings and redirect them to funding their own cost blowouts leaving CFA completely in the lurch.

Just think that through for a minute.

FRV receives the money for 223 secondees to be supplied to CFA, but when they don’t supply up to one-fifth of those spots they get to pocket that money and apply those savings to their own business. You can’t make this stuff up.

VFBV is advocating that the full budget for its seconded workforce should be provided to CFA, which will then pay FRV for the spots it actually fills. We are then asking for any savings from unfilled spots to then be directed to CFA’s fleet budget to replacing ageing trucks.

This creates an incentive for FRV to meet its contractual obligations, but also provides CFA compensation for when it doesn’t.

Now while the monitor expertly documents the repeated instances where these arrangements do not work and how they have constrained CFA’s ability to effectively manage its operational workforce, we remind members that these arrangements were never discussed or proposed by the fire services themselves. In fact, the CFA and MFB Chief Officers of the time were not even privy to the discussions and negotiations who along with volunteers - were left completely in the dark.

A 2017 Parliamentary Inquiry into the arrangements recommended the legislation not proceed and be withdrawn. The inquiry uncovered that the secondment arrangements along with other reforms were cooked up by a small group working in secret within the Department of Premier and Cabinet under then Premier Daniel Andrews and the then Deputy Premier and Emergency Services Minister James Merlino following the resignation of MP Jane Garret.

In our view, the Chief Officers and Commissioners are there to run emergency services that protect the people of Victoria. They have to make hard decisions, and put the safety of Victorians first and foremost in their minds. For a government to tie the hands of these officers behind their backs represents a complete dereliction of duty and a failure to govern for all.

The monitor also documents the long-standing systemic issue of the operation of the “consult and agree” arrangements within FRV that act as a significant barrier to progressing actions jointly led by CFA and FRV. He reports on the significant delays and the result of no clear pathways for resolution.

Again, it is our view that the blame for these arrangements lies squarely with the Victorian Government for agreeing to these arrangements in the first place. These arrangements are unprecedented, and no other Australian State or Territory government has ever transferred management control of an emergency service to a third party.

It is a complete travesty for a government to shirk its responsibilities to the people of Victoria by implementing completely unworkable arrangements that have been proven to be intractable and unworkable for decades. And it’s not as if they weren’t warned. Judge Gordon Lewis first reported on these problems back in 2008, a whole six years before the Andrews Government was even elected, warning how these processes can be abused and lead to the complete deterioration and paralysis of decision making. Findings the independent monitor has echoed today, some 16 years later.

Enough is enough, and VFBV is calling on the Premier to intercede and commit to fixing these issues once and for all. Both Premier Allan and Minister Symes inherited these ridiculous arrangements and have diligently done their level best to make them work. But it is now time for this chapter to be closed, and we are respectfully requesting an immediate commitment to fixing it. The government must restore the CFA Chief Officer’s control of his operational workforce.

In addition, we are calling on the Victorian Government to implement immediate transparency measures that will force the public reporting of the weekly vacancies from here on in. Sunlight is the best antiseptic, and if they are serious about fixing the problem, they should be accountable for it.

VFBV will continue pursuing CFA’s deteriorating budget situation that we updated you on back in July , and the chronic underfunding of CFA’s truck fleet that is seeing 34 year old fire trucks still in service. These trucks belong in a museum, not a modern fire service that the governments reform propaganda promised.

CFA must be fully funded and supported as we head into this and every other year’s Fire Season. CFA volunteers and the Victorian public deserve no less.

The FSIM is providing government with a generous opportunity to save face and course correct. The time to do so is now, not following the next major disaster and at the business end of a resulting Royal Commission.

As I was pondering why the FSIM may not have made specific recommendations that go to the heart of the problems, I was reminded of the limited scope provided in the legislation as to his role as monitor, but also the criticisms we levelled at government around their reforms in the first place.

These arrangements were never consulted on, and never discussed within the Victorian fire services. No wonder they haven’t worked. They were doomed from the get-go because the architects failed to harness the true depth of local expertise and knowledge across our respective cohorts.

In a 2021 article for the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, former economist, public servant, adviser and minster’s minder the late Dr Peter McCawley AM opined “…handling truth needs a touch both tough and delicate. The art is to uphold the gold standard while upholding the minister, point to where the trash is buried, take the chance to confess to errors, and even hint at what good policy might look like.”

Perhaps then the monitor has provided the government a blessing in disguise.

As we see off 2024, I hope all members have an opportunity to get some rest over the festive season, and to all those on our firegrounds over summer – stay safe, and please look after yourselves and each other.

Vale
We were saddened to learn of the passing of VFBV District 23 Council Secretary Jim Buchan in November.  Jim had been the District 23 Council Secretary since 2015 and a CFA member with the Eldorado brigade for more than 37 years.

During his time, Jim held many roles including firefighter, Lieutenant, Captain, Group Secretary/Treasurer, VFBV delegate and Brigade Community Safety Coordinator.  Jim was also a key contributor to the writing of the “Make Tankers Ten” a book on the history of the Wangaratta Fire Brigades Group.

Our thoughts are with Jim’s family, friends, loved ones, the Eldorado brigade and Wangaratta Group and fellow firefighters at this sad time.

Vol Survey

The 2024-25 annual VFBV Volunteer Survey is now open.

The survey is an annual snapshot of volunteer opinion, using questions on issues chosen by CFA volunteers. All responses are confidential and de-identified results go straight to decision makers. By taking part in the survey you help us make a difference in CFA.

The survey measures volunteer opinions on what is important to them and how well CFA is performing according to what they are experiencing.

The gap between the measurement of importance and performance is referred to as the Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Level (VolWEL) outcome. This measure helps to identify volunteer dissatisfaction and where priority attention should be directed by CFA and Government.

Scan the QR code below or click here to take part in the survey today.

Paper copies of the survey are also available by calling the VFBV office on (03) 9886 1141

State Championships

Entries as well as nominations for judges and officials have opened for the 2025 State Championships to be held in Mooroopna.

The State Urban Junior Championship will take place on the weekend of 22 and 23 March 2025, followed by the State Rural Junior and Senior Championships and the State Urban Senior Championship on the 29 and 30 March 2025. All entries and nominations will be collected online again this year with details available on the VFBV website.

Information for competing teams including links to request entry forms for the championships, judge and official nomination forms, and information relating to each championship from the rural and urban competition committees is on the VFBV website.

The VFBV website also has updated rule books for both championships and a list of competitions to be held around the state in the lead up to the State Championship for both rural and urban competitions.

The popular Torchlight Procession will again form part of the second weekend of competition, taking place on Saturday 29 March in Mooroopna. Participation in the Torchlight Procession is open to all brigades, even if your brigade isn’t taking in the championships that weekend.

Entries as well as judge and official nominations will close on Sunday 16th February 2025. If you have any queries relating to the state championships or need assistance during the registration process please contact the VFBV Office on (03) 9886 1141 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Op Ed: Funding up in smoke 
By Adam Barnett, VFBV Chief Executive Officer

First published in The Weekly Times 4 December 2024

Just weeks ago, smoke haze over much of Victoria reminded Victorians that the fire season has arrived. Firefighters are busy reminding the public that fire safety is a shared responsibility, and households must act now to prepare their properties. Common sense for people who live in one of the world’s most fire prone areas.

What is not common sense, is the cut and run financial mismanagement of CFA’s funding, as the State Government shirks its responsibility to invest in the very fire service that will ask volunteer firefighters to stand shoulder to shoulder against whatever Mother Nature throws at us this season.

Without this investment, these brave men and women will be forced to use 34-year-old fire trucks, housed in aging stations that won’t even fit a new truck should they be lucky enough to receive one. 

The 2023/24 CFA annual report has revealed the blow torch being applied to Victoria’s volunteer fire service. A record $67 million, or 20% of total State Government funding to CFA in the last financial year was secretly funnelled away by the Department of Justice and Community Safety to fund its army of public servants who will never hold a hose or ride on the back of an old fire truck.

That money could have replaced 206 light tankers or 138 medium tankers – the work horses of CFA’s fleet.

To add insult to injury, after hiking its Fire Service Property levy to collect an additional $186 million this year, Treasury has admitted that only 25% of the levy goes towards CFA, effectively meaning regional Victorian’s are funding FRV’s cost blowouts.

The only commitment from the extra revenue was to build just 15 new pumpers over the next three years. Cold comfort for a fleet that contains more than 218. And nothing compared to the 1,970 tankers that will require replacing and did not receive a single extra cent.

There isn’t a police levy, a hospital levy or a school levy. CFA volunteers wonder why even with a fire levy they are left out in the cold. They are being left to largely fund CFA themselves through the billion dollars of value they donate each year through their free labour and the millions more raised through their fundraising.

The fourth Annual Report from the government’s independent Fire Services Implementation Monitor also landed with a thud last week, revealing that despite FRV’s record funding – it has failed to provide the CFA Chief Officer with 20% of the senior officers that they are contractually required to provide under the controversial secondment arrangements foisted on CFA under the government’s reforms.

CFA volunteers do not raise these concerns for their own sake, but rather on behalf of the public who will rely on these services when disaster next strikes. The devasting Black Saturday fires were only 15 years ago, but it appears the government have learned nothing.

While CFA’s volunteers are highly professional, expertly trained and sought after right across the country– they can only do so much with what they are being given. They will continue doing everything in their power to protect Victorian’s this summer, but you need to know - the odds are firmly being stacked against them.

SOP Feedback

VFBV encourages all senior volunteers to make themselves familiar with the proposed changes and provide feedback ASAP.

Please visit the VFBV website to access drafts and change logs to help guide your feedback.

International Volunteer Day

In 2024, International Volunteer Day is highlighting the vital role volunteers play in addressing the world’s challenges.

International Volunteer Day is held annually on 5 December and is mandated by the United Nations General Assembly as a unique chance for volunteers and organisations to celebrate the efforts of volunteers and promote the work of volunteers in their communities. The day was established in 1985 by the United Nations General Assembly, and is mandated as an international observance to be celebrated each year.

This year’s campaign is recognising that in every corner of the world, volunteers are usually the first to respond when required and they rise to meet challenges with courage dedication and selflessness which sums up CFA volunteers perfectly. Each day we see CFA volunteers going above and beyond to ensure that their local communities and communities right across Victoria and Australia are safe and protected from fire and other emergencies.

The 3V’s project conducted by the previous Volunteer Consultative Forum conservatively estimated that emergency management volunteers contribute between $1.9 and $2.5 billion to Victoria each and every year across all volunteer emergency service agencies.

On behalf of VFBV, thankyou to all our amazing CFA volunteers for the work you do each and every day keeping Victorian’s safe.

CFA Board Applications
VFBV will shortly be commencing our broad advertising for volunteers who may be interested in being nominated to the CFA Board as a volunteer nominee.

Two positions on the CFA Board are due to expire in June of next year, and members are requested to start thinking about potential applicants, application and selection detail.

Application and selection details will be advertised shortly.

Quarterly Supplement

Included with the December 2024 edition of Fire Wise is the latest edition of the VFBV Quarterly Supplement.

The Quarterly Supplement contains 16 pages of relevant news, updates, information on current issues being pursued by VFBV on behalf of members. It also includes additional resources or updates that are available via our website.

An electronic copy of the Quarterly Supplement can be downloaded here.

Brigade Captains and Secretaries, Group Officers and Group Secretaries as well as VFBV delegates are requested to please take the time to read this and future editions, and table at your upcoming meetings for the benefit and knowledge of your members.

Please update records with Fire Wise
Newly elected Group Officers, Group Secretaries, Brigade Captains and Brigades Secretaries are asked to update their physical and email addresses with Fire Wise as soon as possible so future editions, both printed and electronic, can be forwarded to the correct person, at the correct address.

If the September edition of Fire Wise has gone to previous officers please advise by email or telephone of the name, physical and email address details of the new officer in your place so our database can be updated.

Existing Group Officers, Group Secretaries, Brigade Captains and Brigade Secretaries are requested to provide their email address, if they haven’t already done so, to enable future electronic editions to be forwarded.

VFBV District Presidents, District Secretaries and State Councillors, as well as all brigade and individual subscribers, are requested to send their email address if not already receiving digital editions.

Please include the Group or Brigade you belong to and the office held, and forward this information to Fire Wise by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by telephone on 0402 051 412.

A complimentary copy of Fire Wise, courtesy of VFBV, is sent to each of these officers monthly.

Eight editions per annum are electronic (January, February, April, May, July, August, October and November) and the other four (March, June, September and December) are printed. The printed editions include the VFBV Quarterly Supplement.

Your email addresses will only be used to forward electronic editions.

Your assistance is appreciated in helping us get Fire Wise to the intended people in the quickest amount of time.

Research study on support needs following suicide loss in emergency services
Military and Emergency Services Health Australia (MESHA), a charity of The Hospital Research Foundation Group (THRFG), is conducting a study examining the support needs of those impacted by the suicide death of an emergency service member.  

They are inviting family members, co-workers, healthcare professionals, and service providers to participate by sharing their perspectives and experiences through a survey and optional interview.  MESHA are wanting to hear anyone with experience in accessing support following the suicide death of a police officer, firefighter, paramedic, correctional officer and other first responder, whether they were employed full-time, part-time or a volunteer.

For more information or to participate in the study please visit the MESHA website.

Recent articles on the VFBV website
Consultation Dashboard

Now Open - 2024-25 VFBV Volunteer Survey

VFBV Statement – Explosive Independent Fire Services Monitor Findings

Position Vacant - VFBV Support Officer (North East)

SOP Feedback – Electrical Safety

2025 State Championships Entries Open

Presumptive Legislation Update

Enjoy the VFBV monthly newsletter?
If you enjoy reading the VFBV newsletter each month, why not share it with your fellow volunteers?

Either share this page with others who may enjoy the articles or encourage other volunteers to sign up to receive their own copy via email each month here.

Want to read the VFBV 2-minute briefings from the CFA/VFBV Joint Committees?
The latest edition along with previous editions can be downloaded from the VFBV website here.

Entries have opened for the 2025 State Championships, as with previous years entries and judge and official nominations for all State Championships will be collected online.

The 2025 State Championship dates are:

State Urban Junior Championship            Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd March 2025

State Urban Senior Championship            Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th March 2025

State Rural Senior Championship             Saturday 29th March 2025

State Rural Junior Championship             Sunday 30th March 2025

Entries for all State Championships close on Sunday 16th February 2025. Please note that it is unlikely that late entries will be accepted.

New Member Registrations

Brigades should commence the new member registration process ASAP to enable them to be registered to compete in both local competitions and the State Championships. 

 The new member registration process via the Volunteer Recruitment Hub takes longer than the old processes and needs to be stated well in advance of the Championships to ensure that members are registered before competing.

VFBV has no control over this process and CFA will not authorise competitors who have not completed this to compete at the State Championships. To register a new member please visit https://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/volunteers-careers/volunteer-with-cfa/apply-to-volunteer 

State Rural Championships - Junior & Senior

Team Entries and Registration

The brigade member responsible for completing their team’s entry should complete this form: https://tinyurl.com/2025-entry-eoi  

A link to the entry form will then be sent to you (please note that this is not sent automatically and therefore should be requested sooner rather than later). Entry forms need to be completed by Sunday 16th February 2025. 

The entry form should only be requested by the member responsible for completing the team’s entry.

Judge and Officials Nominations

All Judges and Officials nominations are to be submitted here: https://tinyurl.com/2025-rural-judge  

Please note that you do not need to register as an official for the Rural State Championships if you are nominating to be part of the make up crews, this information is collected via the Team entry forms.

Information for Completing Brigades

A memo with information for competing brigades can be downloaded from the bottom of this page. It includes information on the updated rule book, local competition dates, outstanding female team award and information about the Torchlight Procession which will once again be held at the 2025 State Championships on Saturday evening.

Updated Rule Book

The State Competition Committee have approved changes to the Rule Book at their October 2024 meeting. The updates approved by the Committee include the inclusion of a new disqualification relating to commencing the ascent of the ladder above the second rung and the inclusion of new diagrams.

The Committee have also agreed to new changes on how the Champion Team is calculated at the Junior Championship. The Champion Brigade will be determined by adding together the brigade’s highest placing teams in both age groups regardless of their letter designation.

A copy of the updated rule book can be downloaded from the VFBV website here.

Printed copies of the rule book are available from the VFBV office if required.

State Urban Championships - Junior & Senior

Team entries

The brigade member responsible for completing their team’s entry should complete this form: https://tinyurl.com/2025-entry-eoi  

A link to the entry form will then be sent to you (please note that this is not sent automatically and therefore should be requested sooner rather than later). The entry forms need to be completed by Sunday 16th February 2025. 

The entry form should only be requested by the member responsible for completing the team’s entry.

Judge and Official Nominations

All Judges and Officials nominations are to be submitted here: https://tinyurl.com/2025-urban-judge 

Information for Competing Brigades

The December 2024 Memo from the Competition and Rules Committee to Competing Brigades and Competition Associations can be downloaded from the bottom of this page. The Memo includes the rule book updates, local competition dates and reminders about borrowing for the female aggregate events.  

Rule Book

The updated rule book can be downloaded from the VFBV website the 2024 changes include specifying the minimum number of competitors required to enter 2 teams in A Section at the Senior Championship. 

Queries and Assistance with Entries and Judge/Official Nominations

If you have any problems accessing the online forms, please contact either the VFBV office via email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 03 9886 1141 or Jen at CFA via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 0448 459 132.

Please note if you have query, there will be limited response over the Christmas/New Year period however you will receive a response as soon as possible after this time.

The independent Fire Services Implementation Monitor (FSIM) has slammed the secondment arrangements and concluded that in his opinion and the unanimous opinion of senior leaders of the fire services (CFA & FRV) that the arrangements are not working, have not worked for quite some time and in fact will never work.

And while these findings do not come as a surprise to VFBV who has been the canary in the coalmine about these issues for years, these findings from an independent monitor herald a crossroads for the Victorian Government. An opportunity to make right.

Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) are contractually required to supply CFA with 45 Assistant Chief Fire Officers, and 96 Commanders. These are key positions and are critical to CFA’s ability to perform its role and respond to fire and emergencies in one of the world’s most fire prone area’s.

The independent monitor reports on average in any given week there are at least 17 senior vacancies amongst the Assistant Chief Fire Officer and Commander pool each week. The monitor also finds that at its worst, there can be more than 33 vacancies in a week, accounting for more than 20% of CFA’s paid operational workforce. These figures are supported by volunteer brigades who frequently report to us the shortages and gaps of support they are now routinely having to deal with.

These are alarming figures as we head into Victoria’s fire danger period.

VFBV wish to make clear that our attacks on the secondment arrangements are in no way a reflection on the secondees themselves, but rather a reflection on the misguided arrangements that set them up to fail in the first place. We respect and support each of the individual secondees loaned from FRV to CFA, and have great empathy for the impossible position they are often put in requiring them to straddle two significantly different organisational cultures, two entirely separate chains of command, and unacceptably high vacancy rates from unfilled positions which pushes these brave men and women to exhaustion as they try to cover empty positions while trying to protect themselves from burnout. CFA volunteers support them, and demand that they be treated better.

The CFA Chief Officer is forced to rely on 94% of his operational chain of command to be seconded from a different organisation. In fact, the Chief Officer is left with only 9 Deputy Chief Officers directly reporting to him, with all the remaining 141 uniformed officers in his chain of command forced to be seconded from FRV. The Chief does not even get the chance to choose which ones.

The monitor has reported repeated instances where these arrangements do not work and have constrained CFA’s ability to effectively manage secondees and address the vacancy and non-relief of the seconded positions.

Despite being contractually obliged to fill these positions, when seconded positions are not filled, FRV pocket the savings and redirect them to funding their own cost blowouts leaving CFA completely in the lurch. This is totally unacceptable.

VFBV reminds members that these arrangements were never discussed or proposed by the fire services themselves. In fact, the CFA and MFB Chief Officers of the time were not even privy to the discussions and negotiations who along with volunteers - were left completely in the dark.

A 2017 Parliamentary Inquiry into the arrangements recommended the legislation not proceed and be withdrawn. The inquiry uncovered that the secondment arrangements along with other reforms were cooked up by a small group working in secret within the Department of Premier and Cabinet under Premier Daniel Andrews and the then Deputy Premier and Emergency Services Minister James Merlino following the resignation of MP Jane Garret.

In VFBV’s view, the Chief Officer’s and Commissioner’s are there to run emergency services that protect the people of Victoria. They have to make hard decisions, and put the safety of Victorians first and foremost in their minds. For a government to tie the hands of these officers behind their backs represents a complete dereliction of duty and a failure to govern for all.

The monitor documents the long-standing systemic issue of the operation of the “consult and agree” arrangements within FRV that act as a significant barrier to progressing actions jointly led by CFA and FRV. He reports on the significant delays and the result of no clear pathways for resolution.

It is VFBV’s view that the blame for these arrangements lies squarely with the Victorian Government for agreeing to them in the first place. These arrangements are unprecedented, and no other Australian State or Territory government have ever transferred control of an emergency service to a third party.

It is a complete travesty for a government to shirk its responsibilities to the people of Victoria by implementing completely unworkable arrangements that have been proven to be intractable and unworkable for decades. Judge Gordon Lewis first reported on these problems back in 2008, a whole 6 years before the Andrew’s Government was even elected, warning them of how these processes can be abused and lead to the complete deterioration and paralysis of decision making. Findings the independent monitor has echoed today.

VFBV is calling on the Premier to intercede and commit to fixing these issues once and for all.

Both Premier Allan and Minister Symes inherited these ridiculous arrangements and have diligently done their level best to make them work. But it is now time for this chapter to be called to an end, and we respectfully request an immediate commitment to fixing it. The government must restore the CFA Chief Officer’s control of his operational workforce.

In addition, we call on the Victorian Government to implement immediate transparency measures that will force the public reporting of the weekly vacancies from here on in, and immediately commit to directing any weekly FRV budget savings from the unfilled positions to be diverted back to CFA’s truck funding in order to prioritise the replacement of CFA’s 30+ year fire trucks.

CFA must be fully funded and supported as we head into this year’s Fire Season. CFA volunteers and the Victorian public deserve no less.

A PDF version of the above statement can be downloaded from the bottom of this page along with a copy of the Fire Services Implementation Monitor Year 4 Annual Report 2023-24 and the Judge Gordon Lewis Report

About VFBV: VFBV is established under the Country Fire Authority Act and is the peak body for CFA Volunteers in Victoria. VFBV works tirelessly to represent, advocate and support CFA volunteers to the CFA Board and management, governments, ministers, members of parliament, councils, instrumentalities, business and the public. Our vision is for Strong Volunteerism, Embraced to Build Community Resilience for a Safer Victoria.

Media: Quotes may be attributed to VFBV CEO, Adam Barnett on behalf of Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria

The 2024-25 VFBV Volunteer Survey is now open for all CFA volunteers to take part.

CLICK HERE TO TAKE THE SURVEY

The survey is an annual snapshot of volunteer opinion, using questions on issues chosen by CFA volunteers. It is one of the key opportunities for CFA volunteers to have their voices both individually and collectively heard.

The results from the survey will directly influence the upcoming years priority actions while also tracking trends in volunteer opinion. VFBV’s advocacy for volunteers depends on robust volunteer feedback to help inform decision makers of the issues of most importance and we use the results to drive conversations with CFA and government.

The survey takes on 10 – 15 minutes to complete and all answers and comments provided are confidential, the results go straight to decision makers at CFA and Government.

The VFBV Volunteer Survey is a critical and reliable method to capture the views of volunteers as well as monitoring short-and-long-term trends and effectiveness of initiatives aimed at improving CFA.  A summary of the 2023 survey results was published in the September 2024 edition of the VFBV Quarterly Supplement which can be downloaded here.

You can also help us by spreading the word and encouraging other volunteers to respond to the survey – the more responses, the more impact the results will have, so please encourage other volunteers to take part.

If you have any questions about the survey – please contact your local VFBV Support Officer or the VFBV office.

If any member requires a paper copy of the survey, please contact the VFBV office on (03) 9886 1141 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to arrange for a copy to be posted out.