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Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 3:05 pm
by smackaholic
Yes, as with any government service, it is an industrial complex or racket, if you prefer.
Was discussing the situation in Cali with someone and she said she heard that many LA firefighters bring in 200K+ a year.
Yeah, I know, its an expensive place to live, but damn.
These last few weeks have shown, they need to up their firefighting game a bit....well, at least until the climate scientists have shit dialed in and then, apparently, all this weather extremety bullshit will be a thing of the past.
The question is, how to pay for it.
Adding thousands more to the full time fire fighting staff is not affordable. What they need is a large, well run volunteer system. Maybe give them tax incentives to get enough quality people.
I can't speak for Cali, but any place I have ever lived had pretty well run volunteer departments. The only issue I ever saw was when some volunteers, who were paid firefighters in Hartford started getting shit from their unions. Union goons don't like the idea of anyone else muscling in on their rackets.
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 3:09 pm
by smackaholic
The problem with fire fighting is it is a business where most of the time, the workers are paid to sit on ass.
This is unaffordable.
There will be a need for limited full time staff to manage and conduct maintenance.Everyone else should have a real fukking job which they can leave when the shit hits the fan.
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 3:44 pm
by The Seer
smackaholic wrote: ↑Tue Jan 21, 2025 3:05 pm
Yes, as with any government service, it is an industrial complex or racket, if you prefer.
Was discussing the situation in Cali with someone and she said she heard that many LA firefighters bring in 200K+ a year.
Yeah, I know, its an expensive place to live, but damn.
These last few weeks have shown, they need to up their firefighting game a bit....well, at least until the climate scientists have shit dialed in and then, apparently, all this weather extremety bullshit will be a thing of the past.
The question is, how to pay for it.
Adding thousands more to the full time fire fighting staff is not affordable. What they need is a large, well run volunteer system. Maybe give them tax incentives to get enough quality people.
I can't speak for Cali, but any place I have ever lived had pretty well run volunteer departments. The only issue I ever saw was when some volunteers, who were paid firefighters in Hartford started getting shit from their unions. Union goons don't like the idea of anyone else muscling in on their rackets.
There was a lot of talk years ago also about underfunded pensions of local Cali state, county, and city workers...wonder what ever came of that ticking bomb....
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 5:15 pm
by Diego in Seattle
smackaholic wrote: ↑Tue Jan 21, 2025 3:09 pm
The problem with fire fighting is it is a business where most of the time, the workers are paid to sit on ass.
This is unaffordable.
There will be a need for limited full time staff to manage and conduct maintenance.Everyone else should have a real fukking job which they can leave when the shit hits the fan.
Clearly you have no clue about wildfire firefighting (what's new?).
That's been what's been happening with federal firefighters. Retention has been a huge problem. Hopefully Biden's raising of their pay to $15/hr will help with that.
It doesn't help when a certain political party views federal firefighters as "unskilled labor."
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 5:49 pm
by Mikey
Here in CA they still use prison labor for wildland firefighting.
I guess they do pay the city firefighters way too much. Maybe they should hire a lot of Mexicans to do a difficult and dangerous job that no self-respecting white boy would want to get into. After all there all there's a huge number of under the table illegals available...oh wait...
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 6:08 pm
by Left Seater
Here all Firefighters have to have EMS certification as well.
They do as much EMS stuff as they do firefighting. Of course we don't get wildfires in the cities.
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 6:10 pm
by Mikey
Left Seater wrote: ↑Tue Jan 21, 2025 6:08 pm
Here all Firefighters have to have EMS certification as well.
They do as much EMS stuff as they do firefighting. Of course we don't get wildfires in the cities.
In LA they spend most of their time administering Narcan and transporting to ERs.
Seriously.
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 6:22 pm
by Diego in Seattle
Left Seater wrote: ↑Tue Jan 21, 2025 6:08 pm
Here all Firefighters have to have EMS certification as well.
They do as much EMS stuff as they do firefighting. Of course we don't get wildfires in the cities.
In 2008 I visited a small city in NY. I met someone who worked with an EMS cert as an ambulance driver. He was being paid $7.00/hr.. Imagine calling for an ambulance to take you to the hospital & the people who arrive are being paid the same or even less as someone working at McDonald's....
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 6:24 pm
by Left Seater
We have our fair share of that, but thankfully nothing on the scale of LA or SFO.
Might be that we didn't pass something like Prop 47 that needed to be undone by another Prop.
Re: Changes to firefighting industrial complex
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2025 7:10 pm
by dan's college room mate
EMTs are criminally underpaid.
I’ll never understand this.
This is a job where competence or lack there of is the difference between people living or dying.
IMO, they should be paid more than nurses, but they’re paid a fraction.
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