[quote=davelj]A side thought experiment on the topic of public unions.
As has been discussed before, the vast majority of metro areas in the US are serviced by volunteer fire departments (these tend to be small markets, but they are numerous). However, virtually ALL of the major metro markets (not a lot of markets – by definition – but lots of population) are serviced by a full-time, paid fire department.
Clearly, there are lots and lots of folks who would be happy to volunteer to help out the fire department, even here in SD. They’d go through the training, etc etc… and work essentially for free.
If the unions were amenable, we could start integrating such folks into the current fire department and have them working for and alongside the full-time folks. Over time we could strike a balance between volunteer and full-time workers that better fits our financial wherewithal.
So, why doesn’t this happen? I know the answer but I’m wondering what others think is the barrier.[/quote]
In general, volunteer departments are in rural areas where paid fire departments are not needed, or where they can’t afford one. If you look at a map of the U.S., you’ll quickly see why we appear to have such a large volunteer force. Things are different from department to department, but in many (most?) cases, these departments would not have a staffed station. If a call comes in, the volunteers carry radios around with them and they meet where the call is located (usually one or two will go to the station first to get the engine, or it’s possible someone might bring the engine home). Can you imagine the reponse times in an urban/suburban setting?
In urban/suburban areas, if there is a volunteer component to a paid department, it would be used for training new recruits. Of course, the promise/hope of a job in the paid force is the incentive that makes these kids work for “free” (it still costs the department WRT administrative and training costs, equipment, insurance, etc.). If they don’t think the volunteer experience will land them a job, or significantly increase their chances, I guarantee you there would be precious few full-time volunteers, if any (and the ones who would volunteer F/T are the weird “groupie” types that are actually very dangerous — nobody wants to hire those).[/quote]
AND…
[quote=CA renter][quote=davelj]
That makes sense but if 73% of all fire fighters are indeed volunteers and we know that a huge proportion of the total population in the U.S. is in urban areas, then there must be a lot of volunteers in some major metropolitan areas as well. I agree that the rural model doesn’t translate perfectly to the urban model, but clearly a lot of folks are willing to do this work on a very part-time basis for free. In my view, we should figure out how to use these folks.[/quote]
I could be wrong, but I think you’ve just nailed one of the biggest reasons why 73% of firefighters are volunteers. If each part-time FF is considered a “volunteer,” then it makes sense that more firefighters are volunteers vs professionals. Many of them might work for a day or two a month (maybe more, maybe less), so you need far more of them to get the same coverage. The professional departments would have fewer firefighters because everyone is full-time. Just guessing this, but your post actually made me realize this is a big reason for the population difference between volunteer and professional departments.
Trying to clarify it a bit: it’s possible that 73% of the firefighters are covering only 10-20% (or less) of the calls. I don’t know this, though. Will try to find numbers…[/quote]
And this…
[quote=CA renter]
While looking around for more info on volunteer departments, I just happened to come across this. Of course, they are blaming the unions for the volunteers’ poor performance! (Isn’t it ALWAYS the union’s fault? /sarcasm)
Supporters and critics of the reserve program seem to agree on one thing: performance at some of the reserve stations is weak. Critics are pushing to an end to the program while backers hope to revamp the existing system.
Of the stations that could be cut during Thursday’s meeting, Midway City boasts the best volunteer performance in the first six months of 2010. The 13 volunteers there responded to 51 percent of 156 calls the station received. Station 24 in Mission Viejo — with 16 volunteers — responded to less than half of its 283 calls.
Other stations fared far worse: Station 23 volunteers in Villa Park managed to respond to one of the 59 calls they were dispatched to.
“There’s no question, the numbers stink,” said Brad Reese, a Villa Park councilmember and member of the OCFA board who supports the reserve program.
Other stations, however, such as Emerald Bay and Modjeska Canyon have responded to more than 90 percent of their calls.
It needs to be said because there will be some people who still don’t get it, professional firefighters respond to 100% of their calls. Quite frankly, even I’m surprised at these stats. That’s scary, IMHO.[/quote]
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And this is regarding the shortage of people willing to volunteer.
…
“Nationwide, volunteer fire departments are responding to more calls but with fewer volunteers.
Since 1984, the number of volunteer firefighters in the United States has declined by more than 8 percent, while the number of calls to fire departments has more than doubled since 1986, according to the National Volunteer Fire Council.
“It just seems to be an overall trend across the country, of departments struggling with getting new volunteers in,” said Kimberly Ettinger, director of communications for the council.
For many small and medium-size communities, volunteers serve as the first line of defense during an emergency. As volunteer fire departments dwindle in size, many have been asked to do more with less.
…As older firefighters retire, fire departments struggle to find younger volunteers to replace them.
“The challenge is quite simply recruitment of people who are willing to take the time to get the certification it takes to be a firefighter today,” said Michael Hunt, chief of the Clearwater Volunteer Fire Department in Beech Island, S.C., an Aiken County township of about 4,000 people.
About 19 miles from Beech Island in Belvedere, S.C., Assistant Chief Todd Durance of the Belvedere Fire Department also has a recruiting problem, and sees it as a twofold challenge: People are busy, and training is more demanding, said Durance, explaining that South Carolina requires volunteers to complete 300 hours to become become certified.”
