Volunteers - paid or not

[Christopher.Collins]

Thats a question that I battle with myself every once in a while Ruff.

I am going to use my first volunteer agency as an example. We earned a $50 per call incentive and for the most part worked in 12 hour shifts covering 24/7. Sounds like a paid agency to me. The annual call volume (EMS) was low maybe 1,100 calls a year, 1,200 at best averaging 1 or 2 calls every couple of days. So unless your within the top responder ranks your not exactly earning alot of money.

Its volunteer because WE chose to take what available shifts and not every shift had coverage. If we wanted to book off we were to try and find coverage but it wasnt a dire consiquence if we couldnt. SOPs and SOGs regulated that we must remain in town but otherwise can go about our daily business. We have a duty vehicle with red lights and sirens to utilize, otherwise we an use our POVs with green lights.

In one instance I had refused to take my pay, I wanted to be a volunteer in every sense, but by orders of the chief and treasurer the only way I could do that was to donate it back to the company every meeting. Too much work when I can just cash it and spend it.

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Today I do not see accepting any kind of bennefits for your time as being non-volunteer. What makes a volunteer to me is making the choice to be there and do what your doing, even if its on a schedule. How does that differ from being paid? You need a job to survive (in the real world) and support yourself and family. You can offer what time is best or most convinent for you but that does not nessecarilly mean you will get it. In other words you do not have as much freedom to offer what time you want. Your not there against your will, but you are there because they tell you to be, if that makes any sense.

Frankly I have always believed that to be a volunteer there is a minimum ammount of dedication you must put in to even earn such title. Just because you have the gear and fancy lights in your POV and take one or two calls when you feel like it does not make you a volunteer. You must still be able to function as a team therfore should go to any meetings or company events that you can make, to stay in the loop at the very least. Of course it is always important to put your family and work first, and if its a well run organization the freedom to do that is what makes it volunteer.

[CTXMEDIC]

the true test to see if youre a volly or not is if you show up to calls with a dip in your mouth and a truck of 1970's vinatge or earlier with 15,000 dollars worth of whoopee lights mounted to it and a 6 foot whip antenna. oh yeah, and some sort of public safety badge from Galls on your belt.

[Christopher.Collins]

the true test to see if youre a volly or not is if you show up to calls with a dip in your mouth and a truck of 1970's vinatge or earlier with 15,000 dollars worth of whoopee lights mounted to it and a 6 foot whip antenna. oh yeah, and some sort of public safety badge from Galls on your belt.

LMFAO... welcome to Connecticut... but does that dictate that you ARE or ARE NOT a true volly?

Ive been member of companies that dont offer incentive at all and are run like true proffesional companies. A group of us are there IN CLASS Bs on a regular basis performing various duties around the station and apparatus, having meals together and such. Where regardless of how stupid the call seems, we get on the truck/bus/engine and do our jobs.

Also been a member of companies simmilar to what you described where hanging out was for social purposes, people would moan and groan when certain calls come in and only some will go. The only time people would come out of the woodwork is if there was confirmation of fire or decapatation or something cool. These companies offered good incentives just to make sure the bus left the bay.

[Christopher.Collins]

I remember a day where a call went out for something "stupid."

Quick backround to the story... the dispatch area I got my origins from will tone out 3 times within the span of 2 or 3 minutes, if the bus rolls before that they dont tone a second or third time. If nothing rolls by the third tone its automatic mutual aid from the next town... and the max 3 tone system still applies of course.

Anyways my town got toned out... 3 tones and nothing. Mutual aid town... 3 tones and nothing. Second mutual aid town... again 3 tones. On or about the 4th town toned for a mutual aid ambulance they finally got a crew... half way there they were cancled because my town finally (after about 10 minutes got a crew). I know that we are expected to put our personal lives and work before the volunteer services but that is just plain rediculous that it can go that far without a single ambulance rolling.