Source: Fire and Emergency New Zealand
Fire and Emergency New Zealand is proposing to restructure its organisation to ensure it can sustainably, effectively and efficiently meet New Zealanders’ needs both now and in the future.
Subject to consultation, the proposals in the restructure will touch around 700 roles across the organisation, resulting in the net loss of around 140 positions.
No frontline firefighter positions are impacted, although some supporting functions may change.
“This proposal is about ensuring we are best positioned to deliver a modern and responsive emergency service,” Chief Executive Kerry Gregory says.
“The primary focus is to provide a trusted service that keeps New Zealanders safe. Our dedicated team does an amazing job looking after our communities and this proposal is about ensuring we are best positioned to continue doing that.
“I acknowledge this is difficult for the teams and individuals impacted. We are committed to constructively working through their feedback to ensure we get the best outcome.
“Our intention is to communicate the outcome of consultations before the end of the year, allowing as many people as possible to go into the holiday period with certainty. No structural changes will take effect until the new year, likely to be March/April, to give people and teams time to prepare and transition.
” The changes have been proposed to give effect to Fire and Emergency’s strategic direction, which shapes how the organisation operates and what it focuses its efforts and resources on.”
It is the culmination of a period of evolution that began with the merger of around 40 organisations in 2017 to create a national service. The key drivers behind the proposed changes include:
- Removing silos and increasing collaboration and oversight across functions
- Refocusing on Fire and Emergency’s core business
- Improving role clarity and accountability
- Enhancing decision-making by empowering leaders
- Creating ‘Centres of Expertise’ and improving access to, and quality of, information
“Changing workloads and expectations on our people, along with the need to prepare for future challenges and resource constraints, highlighted the need to make changes to become a more effective and sustainable emergency service,” Kerry Gregory says.
“Our operating environment is evolving rapidly. Communities’ needs are changing, and technology, both the tools we use and those that can create new risks, is advancing at pace. To meet these changes, we must adapt and become more adaptable.
I’m proud of the mahi our teams do every day to keep our communities safe. By making smart decisions now with their input, we can build a more modern, and more trusted emergency service – one that’s equipped to meet the needs of New Zealanders for years to come,” Kerry Gregory says.
Note to Editor
- Fire and Emergency New Zealand has approximately 14,900 personnel
- We have around 1300 fire trucks and over 600 station sites
- In the 2024/2025 financial year, our crews responded to 88,805 incidents
- Fire and Emergency’s 2024/2025 levy revenue was $796,717,000 and other revenue $41,300,000.
