BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — The Brevard County Professional Firefighters local union hosted a rally in support of first responders Thursday.

What You Need To Know

  • A Brevard County Firefighters Union rally on Thursday was a plea for higher pay and consciousness toward better work-life balance for the county's firefighters

  • The Brevard County Professional Firefighters Local 2969 Union says the fire department’s current staffing levels are “at a critical level”

  • The rally started at 11 a.m. at the Viera Government Center

The rally was a plea for higher pay and consciousness toward better work-life balance for the hundreds of firefighters who work in the county.

The Brevard County Professional Firefighters Local 2969 Union said the fire department’s current staffing levels are “at a critical level.”

Brevard County firefighters are still pleading with county commissioners for better pay.

Many have retired or left for better-paying departments.

Firefighters, their families and friends rallied at the government center in Viera on Thursday.

Among them was Cindy Buccieri, who is supporting her husband, Mike. She said public service is his passion, but his job as a firefighter can be dangerous.

With the department being short-staffed, it’s difficult to balance work and home life, she said.

“When they have that mandatory overtime because of the understaffing, they have to work 48 hours, then come home and they have one day off, and they have to go right back at it again. It’s a lot, and it takes a toll on them,” Buccieri said.

Brevard County Firefighters’ Union Local 2969 said the department has lost 18 members in the first month of the year.

And in 2024, they report they lost 121 personnel like firefighters, paramedics and emergency medical technicians to retirement, leaving or getting jobs with other departments paying more — in some cases $30,000 a year more.

The union said the loss of workers and recruiting challenges is making the community unsafe.

Firefighters are having to work more overtime to make up for the lack of personnel, the union confirmed.

“Right now, we don’t have the resources to do that. We just don’t have the resources," union President Michael Bramson said. "We not only need to meet the needs of the county with the proper model, we need to add more ambulances. We need to address the growth of Brevard County.”

Right now, starting pay for a BCFR firefighter is $15 an hour, translating to $30,000 a year.

The average salary is just above $43,000 a year.

County officials have said they recognize the need to hire more firefighters and have offered job fairs and sponsorships.

“We are out here fighting for them, because they are fighting for us every day,” Buccieri said.

The union will speak out again at the Brevard County Commission meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 11.

In a statement before the rally, the county said, "Due to the fact that firefighter contract negotiations are still being discussed and no resolution is at hand, there really isn’t anything that the county can provide you in terms of a comment on today’s (Thursday's) rally event other than that we continue working toward a contract resolution and hope to reach one sooner than later.

"As far as today’s rally, that is not something county government has a hand in, and we would have no comment to add on that subject matter. It is well within their right to hold a rally if they choose.  The county posted a legal notice earlier this week inviting the firefighter union to a negotiation meeting today, scheduled from 9:15 a.m.to 4 p.m. We have been notified they will not attend. Based on that, I have nothing to add. I don’t dispute their numbers, but the union is touting the number of personnel lost, but they won’t come to the bargaining table."