Fire chief won’t discuss censure
Calgary’s fire chief is dodging questions about public rebuke his rank-and-file has dealt him, but the union is going to keep pressing loudly on its demands for changes at the Calgary Fire Department.
Bruce Burrell has kept quiet since his censure last month at an International Association of Fire Fighters convention. He appeared in public Thursday, but would only talk about the issue at hand — a groundbreaking ceremony and photo op for a $19-million southeast station already under construction.
“I will not talk about the censure. The response to the censure is all coming out of the city manager’s office,” he said at the ceremony for the Seton fire-ambulance-police-bylaw facility, located just south of the new hospital.
The Calgary Firefighters Association, after publicly exposing its schism with the chief at the Philadelphia conference, isn’t so reticent to talk.
The union has even hired prominent public relations firm Hill and Knowlton, which now employs Stephen Carter, the political strategist who helped vault Naheed Nenshi and Alison Redford to power.
The association wants to rally others around its push for more firefighters on fire scenes, and tougher standards, even if current response time benchmarks aren’t being met.
“We’re reaching out for help. That’s what this is — this is a plea for assistance,” president Mark Faires said Thursday.
“We’re looking to speak with all of the audiences that we hope are prepared to listen: the public, city council, fire administration, city administration, the decision-makers that determine whether we should have a fire-safe city or not.”
City manager Owen Tobert defended Burrell in a statement issued after July’s censure, saying that under the chief’s leadership, the Calgary Fire Department “provides excellent service delivery to Calgarians.”
The last Canadian chief to be censured at IAFF was the head of the St. Catharines, Ont., department in the fall of 2006, after spats over overtime and sick leave costs. Tony Mintoff took sick leave the following March and stepped down as chief in June 2007.
Calgary firefighters aren’t outright calling for Burrell’s head — so long as he can deliver change, Faires said.
“If we can’t achieve our goals with Chief Burrell at the helm, then we’re looking for decision-makers at city hall to do what’s necessary in assisting us in achieving our goals.”
Burrell has led the department since 2005.
Asked about his future with the department and contract status, Burrell said he’s a permanent employee of the city. A handler then cut off questions unrelated to the station “groundbreaking” event.
The union’s censure resolution, unanimously approved at the international union convention, cited deployment standards, but also management decisions, the frequency of staff grievances, the department’s administrative top-heaviness, and a “severe deterioration in morale.”
Calgary budget documents state that 85 per cent of the 1,400 full-time equivalent staff in Burrell’s fire department are in front-line emergency services.
As part of a citywide hunt for budget efficiencies last fall, the department eliminated a fire marshal and deputy chief position, saving $531,000 from a $189-million budget.
The city website lists 10 deputy fire chiefs under Burrell.