I hate the coming early culture in Firefighting

[u/thatdudewayoverthere]

So because everyone said something about this o taught I might as well.

I hate the fact that it's standard that every shows up early.

To give you an example: At my Department we officially get paid from 6:45 to 7 so 24:15h but it's standard in my department that everyone shows up at around 6-6:15.

So we basically artificially moved our shift time one hour early 6-6 instead of 7-7. In the end everyone still works 24 hours no matter what time you actually start.

Big edit because people don't seem to get my point:

We all Still work 24 hours nobody is actually getting relieved earlier since everyone obviously expects to be relieved by 0615

But if you happen to catch a late call before you get relieved you don't get paid for that call.

For Example:

If I work from 6-6 I worked 24 hours if I get a late call at 5:45 and now worked till 7 I now worked 25 hours

But because my official shift time is 7-7 I only get paid 24 hours even though I worked 25

This problem wouldn't exist if not for the everyone coming in early

This is not supposed to be a discussion about when is a good time for shift change to beat traffic or have more from the day but instead of coming in early and working for free we should just put pressure on our departments to change the shift times to what we actually want

Please share your opinions on this but I personally think it's just annoying and it would be easier if every just shows up when they are paid to do so (plus of course 10-15 minutes to actually get ready)

[u/juic333]

Be invested while on the clock* off the clock you have your own life

[u/tiedtothetides0104 → u/juic333]

I disagree. This is a job where if you are truly invested, you will take it home with you. It's a matter of finding the proper ways to decompress. We are afforded much luxury from what traditional firehouse culture offers us. The least we can do is arrive early to help foster it's growth.

[u/BlitzieKun → u/tiedtothetides0104]

Yea, and that's also a bad idea in the long run.

For mental resilience, you leave it at the station. Sure, let the kids visit, show them the trucks, the tools, etc. But don't bring it home.

Military was the same way.

I get that you need to be invested... but there comes a point where you need to live your life and not glorify your profession 24/7.

[u/tiedtothetides0104 → u/BlitzieKun]

Christ. Such a naive view. How long have you been on the job for?

We bring the job home in understanding that we need to find healthy ways to decompress. On average, we see more traumatic incidents in our careers compared to most active duty military. Of course that is going to take a toll on every one of us. It's naive to think that we don't take that stress home, knowingly or not.

Everyone at my department is all-in. We hang out off duty, hold each other accountable, and are very much involved in eachothers lives. It's a conscious decision to build a strong culture of firemanship that drives all of this. We need to build those bonds if we are going to be pushing boundaries on firegrounds together. At some point this profession becomes a lifestyle vs. a job. The potential risk that we take on daily demands it.

Breaks from the job, other hobbies, and friends outside of firefighting are absolutely necessary. I'm not advocating to commit every waking moment of our lives to firefighting, but coming in an hour early to chat with the off going crew takes practically nothing. It's our obligation to foster the proper environment.

[u/4friedChckensandCoke → u/tiedtothetides0104]

Making this job a lifestyle instead of a job is how you get firefighters with clinical depression, suicidal ideation, and burnout.

[u/tiedtothetides0104 → u/4friedChckensandCoke]

Firefighters have all of these regardless. Just manifests itself differently.