Firefighting & Rescue Social / Professional Network
Fire Fighter I and II GODS
Last year we provided the fire fighter I and II course for our fire fighter to assist them in their education. We found that as soon as the fire fighter passed they got the GOD actions. They got paid job and didn't look back. As the training officers I feel they used the district for the courses our department paid for, and paid them to attend. All but two fire fighters out of the 8 personnell have moved on. It is not that they bettered them self, I is the way it was done. I want to remind all to member were you started. there is things I am prood to say, is we train more then any dedartment in two counties, and when we show up on scene we are asked to help with IC or opion on the issues at hand, by the other Volunteer departments but the paid department act stand offish to us, as they do to all the voluteer departments. What is the differance between Voluteer and paid department? It is what they do between calls. We have paid jobs, and train often, we do not drop the course if we get a call, we start where we left off at in the next training meeting. We used to training about three days a week, and reg. meeting are every two weeks. We have had a decress in attendance at training and meetings.
During the summer we do a lot of public events, so we do less training in summer. Other then summer we train three day a week.
Q. What do we do to keep the Fire Fighter I and II trained personnel and work with the GOD actions?
Q. How do we work better with the paid department GODs?
During the summer we do a lot of public events, so we do less training in summer. Other then summer we train three day a week.
Q. What do we do to keep the Fire Fighter I and II trained personnel and work with the GOD actions?
Q. How do we work better with the paid department GODs?
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by FETC on -
Glad your a career paramedic now after serving 5 years as a firefighter, not many people choose to go that way after carrying "the membership card". You clearly can't see my view on total hours of training, maybe you worked somewhere that the paid firefighters didn't train everyday, I can't speak on that.
But this clearly has nothing to do with the membership card in your pocket. How do you even know I am union? YOU have turned this subject into U vs V, meaning a UNION issue. My point is just one person's opinion.... and one that I can prove with statistical facts from our firehouse reporting system that the paid guys are more trained than our call or volunteer firefighters due to the amount of time spent in the fire station and has nothing to do with the union card.
Get a grip...
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Permalink Reply by Truckie Jay on -
If 10% of the volunteers you put through a FF 1/2 course stay with your dept for 3+ yrs AND stay active that whole time, then your dept is in the norm. Higher than 10%? then count your lucky stars! The fact is volunteer dept's have a huge turnover. They always have and always will.
1. Paid position
2. Moved for a better job outside the district/department area
3. Family Obligations
4. Personal Feelings
5. Wasn't what they 'thought' it would be like
Are just a few of the examples why you would lose a member after putting money into their training. So do you stop training your people? Do you require a set amount of time as a member before you give them the training? Do you require X amount of time served after the training? In the long run these options will do nothing more than hurt your recruiting and retention program.
Fact is we have to train these people asap after they join the department to ensure their safety, yours, the public and enable them to be productive on an incident scene. So dangling FF 1/2 in front of them like a carrot isn't the option. Well then what is the option? There are a number of them out there. But personally it all comes down to only 2 choices.
1. Charge them a minimum fee which you will return after X amount of service to the dept and the community.
2. Face the fact that people will take your training and possibly leave. However, those people are still trained firefighters! And you and your department accomplished that task. Those people are working for ABC Department or XYZ Fire District today because of the dedication and devotion your department and yourself put into their training. And that is what I would be saying. Not 'I can't believe Firefighter X took our 1 & 2 course then went to work over there!" But rather "There are 6 new firefighters working for XYZ dept now because of the training we delivered to them."
And for those people that take the training and stay.. It is still the cheapest way for them and you to obtain trained personnel. Think about it how much money per student are you out? Cost of Instructor, books, paper, propane for the props. Books are reusable and paper and propane broken down per student doesn't amount to THAT much. Compare that to the amount of money a paid department spends per year for training. Cost of the course, lodging, books, travel, per diem, overtime. All of these are possible and even feasible things a paid department deals with. Fact is unless you pay your volunteers an hourly rate to take training you've ahead of the curve from the get go compared to us paid departments.
And as for paid XYZ department bad mouthing your department. So what, I guarantee they have their fair share of foundation saves just like the rest of us. We all put our 'turnout pants' on the same way. If they think different let them, what goes around comes around right?
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Permalink Reply by Paul Everson on -
It is common for staff to take the training and run. There is no way around it without a contract stating they will stay for x number of years or pay the department back.
As far as the "GODs" comments, I agree with damnthing. Also, those that have left may realize the grass isn't always green on the other side.
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Permalink Reply by Jeff Gaudio on -
Your friends don't owe the department anything but I see your point of view. It's like, you wouldn't be there if you weren't here first. I can also see their point of moving on to improve themselves.
Just wish em the best of luck and remind them where they started.
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Permalink Reply by Eric Hamlett on -
Hi all I am a vol fireman and EMT. I work a round paid brothers and sisters ever day.Some day I may be payed . Every one here has made a good point. I would just like to say paid or vol we are still brother and sister. We all love what we are doing are we would not be doing it. Some may go and some will stay That is life. Bottom line we all need to respet our brothers and sisters. God bless every one please STAY SAFE.
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Permalink Reply by R. Ann Balmer on -
Thank you all! All are great points and helped me not feel so bad. We realy have been luck to keep some for five year and others for seven years, but we do have a turn over about every three years, as it seems to be the norm.
Still not going to give up on bettering the relationship with the department we have so much truble out of. I pray everyday that things will get better, and it has. I just need to give it more time it sounds like. Thank guys
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