Mississauga firefighters are without a contract; the chief is gone; the City is stalling on negotiations: ‘It’s a mess’ union officials say

The City of Mississauga’s unofficial slogan, ‘leading today for tomorrow’, couldn’t be further from the truth, according to the head of Mississauga’s firefighters’ union.

Due to an alarming lack of funding by City officials the fire department has struggled, despite the hard work of its firefighters who were increasingly forced to do more with less. The national standard for a fire response is 240 seconds 90 percent of the time. In 2018, Mississauga Fire’s average response time was 536 seconds (8 minutes and 56 seconds) more than twice the standard established to keep residents safe. 

Mississauga should have close to 50 fire stations for a city its size with almost 800,000 residents. It currently has 22. It is a shocking illustration of the failure by elected local officials and senior staff. The woeful investments in fire protection and related emergency services have put tremendous strain on the firefighters left with less than half the resources needed to keep Mississauga residents safe. 

After decades of neglect, the city’s frontline firefighters, who throw themselves in harm’s way every day, are now wondering when funding for their own needs will be brought forward. 

The Fire Association’s members are frustrated with the lack of progress on a new collective bargaining agreement for Mississauga Fire and Emergency Services (MFES). Sixteen months have passed since the previous contract expired in December 2023 and there are no signs of a new deal.

“We have two offers that have gone in and there's been no response to either one of them,” Chris Varcoe, President of the Mississauga Firefighters’ Association, told The Pointer. “They don't even respond to them. There's been no counter. We've put a lot of time and effort into countering and to get bargaining going, and there's been no effort to keep that going.

“It just appears to us, and to any reasonable person looking at it, that the City's not interested in negotiating a deal, that they simply just want to move it ahead and allow the arbitrator to make the decision, which is demoralizing to the members.”

Mississauga firefighters union boss Chris Varcoe says members are frustrated over stalled contract negotiations.

(Submitted)

Varcoe told The Pointer that once the department’s previous collective agreement expired, the Association immediately set negotiations in motion, but offers brought forward by the City have been “shockingly low”, management has shown up “ill prepared” to negotiate and, in some cases, have not even put an offer on the table. 

“We're very, very frustrated with the process and the lack of engagement by the employer to try to negotiate a deal with us, because it just simply isn't there.”

He recognizes the significant financial and economic pressures facing City Hall, including a 23.3 percent police budget increase this year, which was heavily criticized, $450 million needed to help pay for a new hospital and $65 million needed to cover the new Hurontario LRT’s annual operating cost. But he says if City officials think they can extract wins at the expense of the firefighters, it “would be hugely problematic.”

“We always joke about the logo, ‘leading today for tomorrow’, around the city of Mississauga. That's just something they put on the letterhead, but nothing that anybody ever really takes seriously. We don't lead in any area when it comes to looking after its firefighters, getting contracts, being cutting edge.”

“They have to be dragged to offer some type of an improvement that others are able to freely negotiate, and for some reason, we're not ever able to get there with the City. It's always a fight.”

Members of Mississauga Fire have been left without a collective agreement after the service’s previous agreement expired in December 2023.

(Alexis Wright/The Pointer files) 

The City came forward in the fall with what union members were told would be a large, comprehensive offer, but Varcoe says “it fell well short” of anything the Association would consider, “and it landed with a bit of a thud.” At the time, the Association’s members were told there was nothing left to offer and that if they could not agree to it, arbitration would be the only resort. 

At the beginning of this year the City walked back its position and entertained another offer from the union. Varcoe says there has been no counter from management yet. 

“They just ignore it and then come back with one of theirs, entirely new again. They don't even address the issues and that's a bit of a problem,” he says. “Everything takes weeks and months for them to consider, and it's really just stalling tactics, stalling, delaying. They're clearly not interested.”

A baby step was made after two days were used in April to secure a wage adjustment for 2024. It was ratified by Council during a closed session meeting last week—marking 18 months since negotiations began. While the Association was pleased that an interim wage adjustment was finally made to address the rapidly rising cost of living, Varcoe says it still leaves members’ wages trailing behind key benchmarks. The pay increase likely won’t be received until June. 

“People have real expenses,” he stressed. “Food costs more to feed your family and to put fuel in your car, and interest rates are up, and then paying mortgages and things like that. These are real pressures and in the face of these pressures, we don't want to hear that the City's too busy dealing with everybody else, and they'll get to us at some point down the line. It's disrespectful, and it's hugely problematic for all of us.”

Mississauga Fire Fighters Association President Chris Varcoe warns City Hall's contract delays will likely cost taxpayers millions in the long run.

(Alexis Wright/The Pointer files) 

City officials declined to comment on the state of negotiations. 

“Respecting the integrity and confidentiality of the bargaining process, we can only confirm that bargaining remains ongoing with the Mississauga Fire Fighters Association,” Geoff Wright, CAO and City manager, said in a statement to The Pointer.

“The City of Mississauga remains committed to reaching a fair and sustainable agreement that serves the best interests of our employees and the taxpayers we are accountable to.”

The need for an agreement, which outlines the terms and conditions of employment for firefighters and other staff members inside the department, comes at a pivotal time for the essential service as the department undergoes long-overdue capital improvements to its infrastructure that were neglected by staff and elected officials inside City Hall for decades.

For about thirty years the City failed to build enough fire stations to match its growing population. Simultaneously, those that had been built were falling dangerously below safety standards into a state of disrepair. As councils passed lean fire budgets the service struggled to keep up with national response times, while many of the fire halls became outdated and decayed, some with asbestos still inside.

The pattern of neglect finally began to change when Deryn Rizzi was hired in 2021 as the new chief to finally transform the department. 

Since her arrival there has been a concerted effort by staff and council members to revitalize Mississauga’s fire service with larger budgets approved that have prioritized investments to safeguard firefighters, improve dangerously slow response times and modernize the department. 

Then, last month Rizzi was suddenly gone. Her unexpected departure shocked many sources The Pointer spoke to.

A City spokesperson confirmed that, “As of March 31, 2025 Deryn Rizzi is no longer the Director of Emergency Services and Fire Chief for the City of Mississauga. We wish her well in her future endeavours.” Former Deputy Chief, Stephane Malo, who has been with the service since 1996, will serve as acting Fire Chief until a permanent replacement is named.

City officials refuse to confirm the circumstances of Rizzi’s snap departure, whether her contract was terminated or if she resigned. “As this is an employment matter, the City is not able to comment any further on the former Chief’s departure,” the spokesperson wrote.

Rizzi stepped into the role knowing City officials grossly underinvested in their fire service for decades. A few months after assuming the position, she put her name to a bold report demanding $66 million from council across the next decade to fund refurbishments to bring 17 stations up to standard and pay for necessary repairs. It was also agreed that six new fire stations would finally be built across a 12-year horizon to address the fire service’s disturbing response times, which had gotten so bad that union members felt lives were on the line.

The work she began now hangs in the balance as the service’s members remain unclear about what happened.

“At this time, no information has been provided to the Association regarding the change, and no communication has been initiated by the City. As a result, we are left with limited insight into what has transpired,” Varcoe said on behalf of the Association, regarding Rizzi’s unexpected departure.

The City of Mississauga informed The Pointer that as of March 31, Deryn Rizzi is no longer fire chief for Mississauga Fire and Emergency Services. The circumstances of her departure remain unclear.

(Alexis Wright/The Pointer files) 

Without a permanent fire chief, and the state of Mississauga Fire’s collective agreement stuck in a bargaining freeze, the fire service has been left in a precarious position. The next meeting date for negotiations is scheduled for May 30. Varcoe is frustrated that the City is only offering one day with the Association to discuss a potential deal. 

“They're certainly not prioritizing bargaining with their firefighters. I think it's pretty clear now that they just intend to let this go to an interest arbitrator, because it seems that there is no will to get a deal with us,” Varcoe says. “We don't know whether that's political will or whether it's just from the HR group, but they're an exceptionally difficult group to deal with, and I think we're seeing the lack of the experience at the bargaining table from the City. There's no one at the table who's ever negotiated a deal with a fire association. So we're seeing it firsthand, and it's a mess.”

He said the Association will of course show up in good faith, but the reality is, “the ball is in the employer's court.”

“These delays are frustrating for us and don't do anything to help firefighters pay the bills in their own households. We could be two years behind by the time we settle a deal and that seems to run contrary to ‘We're leading today’. We don't seem to lead anything…”.

Email: [email protected] 

Twitter: @mcpaigepeacock

At a time when vital public information is needed by everyone, The Pointer has taken down our paywall on all stories to ensure every resident of Brampton, Mississauga and Niagara has access to the facts. For those who are able, we encourage you to consider a subscription. This will help us report on important public interest issues the community needs to know about now more than ever. You can register for a 30-day free trial HERE. Thereafter, The Pointer will charge $10 a month and you can cancel any time right on the website. Thank you