Then-Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, Victoria State Emergency Services Commissioner Tim Wiebusch and then-Victorian Minister for Emergency Services Jaclyn Symes during a visit to the State Control Centre in October 2022.
Emergency Management Victoria is consulting staff and unions over a proposed restructure of the State Control Centre that would change how the centre is staffed outside business hours.
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The SCC detects, monitors and coordinates the state’s response to emergencies, providing agency support and public information when disasters strike.
The changes, proposed to take effect by mid-2026, would affect the pay and conditions of dozens of specialist staff, with some standing to lose up to $40,000 in overtime and allowances, according to unions.
The government said the restructure would not reduce emergency response capability.
The SCC was significantly strengthened following the Black Saturday Royal Commission, including a move to a 24/7 model.
Under the proposed changes, 65 per cent of staff would be moved to a weekday 9am-5pm structure.
The remaining 35 per cent would continue outside business hours on a new generalised “watch desk”, expected to absorb the work of multiple specialised functions.
The government and EMV both said the model would maintain 24/7 operations.
“There will be no reduction in frontline staffing and Victorians will continue to be protected during emergencies,” a government spokesperson told Country News.
An EMV spokesperson added that specialist staff would be activated into response roles during major emergencies, with standby and recall arrangements in place.
“Victorians will always be supported before, during and after emergencies by the hard-working staff at the State Control Centre,” the EMV spokesperson said.
Community and Public Sector Union branch secretary Jiselle Hanna said the official framing obscured what the changes meant in practice.
The union argued that moving most specialists to business hours and relying on standby arrangements outside them was a fundamental downgrade of readiness.
“Disasters don’t stick to a 9-5 schedule, so the dedicated workers responsible for managing them shouldn’t either,” she said.
The union warns the pay cuts could trigger an exodus of experienced personnel.
“Our members are still recovering from cuts that came in 2020, this proposal will further decimate our SCC,” Ms Hanna said.
VFF said farmers expected the State Control Centre to be strengthened, not scaled back, particularly following bushfires in January.
VFF acting president Peter Star said the changes were concerning for rural communities, particularly following recent bushfires.
“Victorian farmers rely on a strong, properly resourced emergency management system, and any cuts that weaken preparedness or response capacity, will set off alarm bells," he said.
Mr Star also criticised the timing alongside a looming Emergency Services Levy increase for farmers.
“Coming at the same time farmers are being hit with the looming ESL hike, this is a slap in the face to people who are already paying more, while expecting emergency services to be strengthened, not stripped back,” he said.
A government spokesperson said its emergency services investment of more than $2 billion this year exceeds revenue raised through the levy.
EMV said feedback from staff and unions was being considered as part of the formal consultation process.
The central dispute, whether moving the majority of specialists off around-the-clock rosters constitutes a reduction in capability, remains unresolved.
