Paul Hoey Wholetime Firefighter
Red Watch, Ballymena Fire Station 
About Us
Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service is committed to actively promoting equality and diversity in the workplace and in the wider community. Respect for fairness, equality and diversity across our organisation is fundamental to the way in which our Fire & Rescue Service is organised and delivered. It is integral to all that we do.
The Equality Unit is part of the Human Resources Department and is based at Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service Headquarters, Lisburn. Our responsibility is to assist the organisation in meeting its equality commitments which includes the Statutory Duties set out in the Northern Ireland Act 1998. Our main functions include:
- promotion of equality and diversity awareness throughout our organisation and beyond
- working towards the elimination of discrimination in our workplace
- implementation of fair employment legislation
- mainstreaming of equality in accordance with the Section 75 Statutory Duties
- assisting policymakers with screening, internal and external consultation and Equality Impact Assessments
- development and implementation of affirmative action measures in areas of under-representation, in particular raising gender awareness and the profile of female firefighters
- promotion of good relations between people of different racial groups, religious belief and political opinion
- provision of progress reports and annual monitoring returns to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland
- development and review of equality related workplace policies
- design and delivery of equality-related training for NIFRS personnel
