Recruitment Crisis
I am writing in response to Ron Graner’s articles “The Recruitment Crisis in the Fire Service, Parts 1 and 2” (Fire Engineering, September and October 2022). After retiring from the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) as a ladder company lieutenant and relocating from New York to the Carolinas, I joined the local fire department. I was surprised to find out that none—and I do mean none—of my qualifications could be transferred to my new position as an unpaid volunteer.
I was told by the state administrators I called regarding this that the FDNY is, for lack of a better term, a self-certifying department and is therefore out of the purview of the state and/or multistate qualifications deemed necessary here in our new home state. I feel that this level of in-state qualification is appropriate for new firefighters who approach our profession straight out of high school, college, or the military and would need to know their firematics from page one of the textbooks and manuals. However, after speaking to personnel from other departments locally and reading Ron Graner’s articles, it seems the call for firefighters—especially volunteer firefighters—is dire.
I’d like to make a suggestion: Certifying agencies should allow local fire departments searching for personnel to access the large number of retirees and relocations and their massive administrative and fire scene experience that could lend a hand. To facilitate this, first, fire companies could contact retiree associations and post advertisements for needed personnel. Then, local, state, and multistate certifying agencies could make exemptions for personnel who don’t qualify for employment because of the original locale of their certification (for lack of a better term, I’ll call these “transfer firefighters”). These transfer firefighters could then be “fast-tracked,” skipping in-state learning for their previously taken, out-of-state qualification classes and instruction.
Should the prospective transfer firefighter take the qualifying written subject test or qualifying exam? Sure. Pass practical or physical qualifications? Absolutely. But for someone to sit in a class for a firefighter position for months who was previously a firefighter, company officer, or chief of a high-incident fire department is expensive for the department, time consuming and distasteful for the transfer firefighter, and (when you really think about it) largely unnecessary.
Specific standard operating procedures and standards could be learned at drill and in-service training at the local company “on the fly,” as it is done everywhere. The current system ultimately results in fewer personnel in the local fire department, where one additional, trained, seasoned firefighter on scene could “make the difference.” This “We know you know what you are doing, but you’re not certified to (fill in the blank) local standard” is not in the best interests of the fire department at the incident or the civilian population suffering from the lack of staffing.
J. Bauer
Lieutenant (Ret.)
FDNY
Fighting Mandates
I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude for Bobby Halton’s courage and leadership in the fire service. I am a federal firefighter and have watched many of his videos on leadership in the fire service. When I saw his interview with International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) President Ed Kelly discussing the COVID-19 mandates last year, I knew it was time to take action. I started a group with a few other firefighters called Federal Employees for Freedom. We grew to more than 6,700 members and raised $157K to obtain a legal team and fight back against the mandates. We hired John Howard, Leslie Manookian, and George Wentz to represent all federal civilians in our case against President Biden and the Safer Workforce Taskforce. Our lawsuit is currently stayed in the 11th Circuit Tampa Division awaiting the decision out of the 5th Circuit case. I am inspired by Halton’s courage and love his quote, “The arrogance of moving forward after realizing an error is unforgivable.” It inspired me to continue this fight.
I recently saw his episode of “Politics and Tactics” on the Humpday Hangout (fireengineering.com) and continue to be encouraged by him and others. I appreciate him and Fire Engineering allowing people a platform to discuss this divisive issue. It was so awesome to see Battalion Chief (Ret.) Thomas Lapolla from FDNY featured, wearing his National Coalition of Frontline Workers shirt (I am a member of that as well). I have always thought of the Seattle (WA) Fire Department as the greatest department on the planet, so it was awesome for me to see Steve Collins passionately speaking out for the members who have not been reinstated. I believe this moment has provided a unique opportunity for real leadership and courage to emerge.
When Federal Employees for Freedom started gaining momentum, the IAFF leadership reached out to the local presidents and instructed them not to support or contribute to any lawsuits against the mandates. It is an important detail because it was actively encouraging the IAFF leadership to stand down because its $2.2 million legal team had already determined it would be a lost cause. It called our lawsuit a “sham lawsuit” and made fun of the locals who contributed funds toward our fight regardless of their membership demands.
I just wanted to thank Bobby Halton and let him know that I am standing with him and the others featured on the Humpday Hangout. Thanks again for everything he has done and continues to do for the fire service.
Dan Tate
Firefighter
Federal Employees for Freedom
Quality Control for the Fire Service: Are We Headed for Failure?
Think of how many times you have stepped onto a commercial airliner and put blind trust into its safety, from the manufacturing process to its repair and maintenance. I know I rarely think of all the work that is required to craft this flying behemoth that will take me five miles above the Earth and stay there without it plummeting to Earth like a missile bound for detonation. Yet, perhaps I should.
I recently watched the Netflix documentary “Downfall” and was amazed to discover how the huge, and once greatly admired, company Boeing had stooped to such lows to meet margins and bring in as much money as possible. Boeing employees went into great depth of how pre-1997 Boeing was not only a great company to work for but also went to great lengths to deliver the highest quality control in the creation of its aircraft at the Boeing plant as well as with repairs and maintenance.
However, in 1997, Boeing merged with McDonnell Douglas to create at the time the largest aerospace company in the world. As reported in the documentary, employees of the new Boeing/McDonnell Douglas stated that almost immediately quality control was decreased to meet larger quotas and lessen spending in manufacturing. This continued down a slippery slope for years until Boeing’s inception of the 737 MAX in 2017 and subsequent crashes in 2019 and 2020. After the in-depth investigation, it was determined that blatant disregard for quality control and pushing aircraft out the door as fast as possible to meet monetary demands had caused the crashes and could have easily been avoided.
So, how does Boeing’s story equate to the fire service, you may ask? Personally, I think the fire service, in many instances, has taken on a similar trajectory to Boeing, although I wonder if we’ve truly seen it impact us to the extent of the 737 MAX crashes. If we continue as we have, though, I think it’s only a matter of time. Perhaps your organization is only experiencing a portion of the issues I will lay out, or maybe it has others that aren’t included. Either way, I think we need to closely consider those issues we are affected by and find ways to bring back that “quality control” we need.
Staffing is one of the biggest areas that I’ve noticed has suffered as budgets have grown tighter. Perhaps one of the greatest losses, departments and crews are now forced to learn how to multitask, do more with less, and do the work of two or three firefighters on fire and emergency scenes. Many departments have lowered the minimum staffing from five and six to four, then three, then even two in extreme cases. This has created an extremely dangerous environment where our men and women are often physically taxed beyond what they should ever be and have to find ways to do the same job as before with fewer people. If ever there is a problem that our community should be aware of, it’s this one.
I know if my house is on fire, I don’t want minimum staffing on the trucks responding but rather maximum staffing. I think we can all agree that minimum is just that, giving us the minimum chances for success not only to get the job done for our community but to come home to our families safe.
Going hand in hand with the staffing problem is that now in most communities the fire department has an all-hazards response model. This had created a huge uptick in our response numbers, often requiring a response to calls that do not require a million-dollar, taxpayer-funded fire engine or truck. Firefighters are now more tired and physically taxed than ever, as we are required to respond to not only fires but emergency medical calls, motor vehicle accidents, gas and water leaks, sparking outlets, wires down, dogs and people locked in cars, chirping smoke alarms, funny smells, and more.
All this is in addition to the daily assortment of other tasks from truck checks to station cleanup, hydrant tests, business inspections, smoke alarm installations, public demos, and so on. It’s often a miracle to find enough time in the shift to complete all the necessary tasks in between running calls. Yet, when a civilian is trapped in a house on fire at 3 a.m., we must forget that we haven’t slept in 20 hours and focus on the task at hand.
It seems absurd that we are asked to give so much, often for so little, and often at our health’s expense. Like the faulty computer program in the 737 Max, we are not setting our people up for success and, in many cases, it is only a matter of time before that perfect storm occurs, our physical and mental health will take a crash dive, and our families will have to pick up the pieces.
In many instances, there has been a lowering of standards as departments scramble to find and retain the people needed to keep trucks in service. This may appear in many ways, but most likely it has evolved over time, sliding slowly down a decreasing slope of quality. One thing many departments have regressed to is the lowering of medical certification they require their personnel to obtain from advanced life support (ALS) to basic life support. The desire for all ALS fire apparatus within a department is an unobtainable dream that many departments gave up on long ago. Another is hiring standards, as the number of people turning out to test for agencies has fallen.
The fire service as well as our firefighters are too important to let lie abandoned by the roadside. The members of our communities desperately need us, and they need us well-rested, happy, and fulfilled in our chosen profession and appropriately staffed to get the job done in the shortest time possible.
So, what to do? Do we ignore the warning signs and wait for this airplane to drop from the sky? It could be reasonably argued that the warning signs are already here. Suicide rates of first responders are at an all-time high, and recruitment and retention are at an all-time low. If we don’t put some quality control measures in place, who knows what the future holds.
We need to bring these issues before our leadership and local government and find ways to promote healthy growth for the sustainability of the fire service. The public needs to be made acutely aware of what public servants are being asked to do and with what they are given to do it. This is no longer an issue that can be ignored but needs to be talked about and the quality improved so that the communities we serve receive the best service.
Zachary Brown
Captain
DeKalb County (GA) Fire Rescue
