YOUR UNION AT WORK
Your local union, CPF, and IAFF are there to protect you on the job while you protect the public. Together, we bring the strength and experience of over 100 years of advocacy advancing and protecting the rights, health and safety, wages, and benefits of our members.
YOUR UNION AT EVERY LEVEL
Firefighters are strongest when we stand together — not just on the fire ground, but when we represent you at city hall, the statehouse, and in Washington, D.C. Your union works at three levels to protect your career, your safety, and your family.
Together, these three levels of representation ensure firefighters have a voice everywhere decisions about our profession are made.
INTERNATIONAL REPRESENTATION
The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) represents nearly 365,000 firefighters and emergency medical workers across the United States and Canada. It drives federal policy, secures national benefits, and delivers the training, health, safety, and medical research, and resources firefighters rely on every day.
STATEWIDE
ADVOCACY
California Professional Firefighters (CPF) represents more than 37,000 firefighters across California, ensuring firefighters have a strong voice in Sacramento where critical laws affecting our profession are written.
LOCAL
REPRESENTATION
Your local negotiates pay and benefits, protects due process rights, stands at your side in disputes with management, and fights for all of us in the halls of power.
MEMBER DUES
AT WORK
Every member’s dues help ensure firefighters have a strong voice locally, statewide, and nationally.
Your dues support legislative advocacy, workplace representation, health and safety initiatives, training programs, and member support services that protect firefighters and strengthen the profession.
DUES BREAKDOWN
Recent independent audits showed that 88% of CPF and 77% of IAFF dues are used for programs and services that directly impact members and local leaders. Most unions spend 66% of their revenue on programs. The IAFF and CPF far exceed that.
Together, these investments ensure firefighters have representation wherever decisions about our profession are made.
PROTECTIONS FOUGHT FOR FIREFIGHTERS,
BY FIREFIGHTERS
Every protection firefighters rely on today exists because previous generations of firefighters stood together through their union.
From pay parity and stronger retirement protections to cancer presumptions and safer staffing levels, these advances were not given — they were fought for by firefighters working collectively through their local union, the California Professional Firefighters, and the International Association of Fire Fighters.
Your union works at every level to protect you and your family throughout your career – and into retirement.
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Contract negotiations protecting wages, working conditions, and benefits
Representation during discipline or workplace disputes
Won millions of dollars through several lawsuits for dispatchers, heavy rescue technicians, rescue maintenance, and medics
Fighting for back pay due to the late relief lawsuit
Advocacy for safe staffing and equipment standards including a recent IAFF Standards of Cover where data revealed how far behind the city has fallen with increasing resources, staff, vehicles, and fire stations.
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Hazmat training
State and federal cancer & illness protections
Behavioral health initiatives
Champion for safer PPE
Exposure tracking
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Survivor benefits for fallen firefighters and their families
Retirement security protections
Disaster relief assistance
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Legislative advocacy in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.
National training programs – for the fire ground and for the union hall
Research on safety issues including PPE and other health issues
Union Education Resources
CPF Fire Wire Presents:
The Importance of Political Action
On this episode of CPF Fire Wire, CPF President Brian Rice sits with Monterey Firefighters Association Local 3707 President Ross Pounds, Chula Vista Firefighters Local 2180 Political Action Committee Chair Drew Smith, and CPF's very own Deputy Political Director Joe Armenta to discuss the importance of getting involved in local issues affecting our members.
CPF Fire Wire Presents:
Fight for CAL FIRE 66-Hour Workweek
For decades, CAL FIRE firefighters have been forced to work 72-hour workweeks despite the standard 56 implemented at many departments around the state. This has led to retention issues for the department and caused harm to CAL FIRE firefighters' families, physical health, and mental health. Governor Gavin Newsom has included the 66-hour workweek in his proposed 2024 budget that is currently under consideration by the California Legislature, bringing Local 2881 one step closer to parity.
CPF Fire Wire Presents:
CPF Legislative Wins Over the Past Six Years
Advocacy and legislative engagement are the backbone of protecting and advancing the rights of California’s firefighters. The CPF’s highly respected Legislative Team has spent years fighting in the halls of power to secure critical wins that safeguard our profession, our families, and our future. From strengthening firefighter protections and securing fair benefits to championing life-saving cancer presumptions and ensuring retirement security, these victories don’t happen by chance—they happen through relentless advocacy, strategic action, and member engagement. This video highlights the historic wins of the past six years, demonstrating why staying informed, involved, and united is essential to shaping the future of the fire service.