Volunteer firefighters are professionals. Paid and volunteers are expected to be of the same standards under the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA).
NFPA is the international organization that sets the standards related to fire safety and firefighting.
And across Canada, 71 per cent of firefighters, amounting to over 90,000 firefighters, are volunteers, according to the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs (CAFC). But less and less are volunteering to be firefighters.
Dan Heney, Regional Fire Chief at the Bonnyville Regional Fire Authority (BRFA), citing a CAFC national survey, said Canada lost 30,000 firefighters over the past six years. In 2016, there were reportedly 156,000 firefighters, and it fell to 126,000 in 2022 – 90,000 of which are volunteers.
Anticipated recruitment challenges
In St. Paul, the St. Paul Fire Department’s Chief, Trevor Kotowich, said, that currently, retainment is not an issue. They currently have 36 spots filled out of 39.
“I'm not finding that it is getting harder to retain firefighters, but certainly moving forward I anticipate challenges with recruiting, and that is not only consistent with other departments in Alberta, but across Canada also,” Kotowich told Lakeland This Week.
In anticipation of recruitment challenges, Kotowich raised the idea of offering a property rebate for volunteer firefighters who own property and live within the Town or the County of St. Paul.
Kotowich noted that the Town of Coaldale introduced two volunteer firefighter tax rebate programs in 2020. One is a property tax rebate program of up to $2,000 a year for local businesses employing and providing paid release time to volunteer firefighters who respond to emergency calls while at their jobs.
The other is an incentive of up to $1,000 a year tax rebate for Coaldale’s volunteer firefighters on their residential tax bill.
“I am under the impression that it has helped with retention and recruitment. There would have to be a minimum attendance requirement for attending emergency calls, meetings and trainings for members to qualify,” said Kotowich.
Kotowich said the idea is still in the early stages of discussion with the Town and the County of St. Paul, with both municipal councils seeking more information.
First tax rebate in Alberta for volunteer firefighters
Clayton Rutberg is the Director of Protective Services and Fire Chief of Coaldale and District Emergency Services. Coaldale is the first municipality in Alberta to introduce tax rebates for volunteer firefighters.
Rutberg told Lakeland This Week that the tax rebates have helped their volunteer firefighters. While difficult to measure how much it has helped with recruitment and retention, Rutberg said, that combined with other incentives, it helps.
“I definitely think it is an important tool... for recruitment and retention,” he said. “For the most part, it’s not a huge burden for municipalities.” Rutberg said that in Coaldale, with around 40 volunteer firefighters, the collective minimum tax rebate they receive from the municipality is $40,000.
“That’s not a huge expense when you think of the operations of a fire department,” Rutberg said.
Wage
BRFA Regional Fire Chief Dan Heney shares the same sentiment as Rutberg. For example, he said firefighters with five years of experience earn around $100,000 a year, on top of benefits.
Meanwhile, the average starting salary for a new firefighter is $87,314, according to the 2021 Alberta Wage and Salary Survey.
So, putting that into perspective, what would it look like if a municipality with 30 firefighters for example, would all get paid, Heney questioned. “That’s a lot of cash,” he said. “If you think about the benefits that municipalities in this country get from volunteer firefighters, there is nothing more applicable than just taking a look at what career firefighters make.”
Heney worked as a senior manager in two different career fire services in Prince Albert and in Calgary – 90 per cent of their operational budget went to salary, and 10 per cent went to training and equipment, he said.
Cold Lake’s Executive Chief Fire Officer Jeff Fallow said that Cold Lake Fire-Rescue is not facing challenges with recruitment and retainment. He also said their fire rescue service doesn’t have a large turnover, with around half of its volunteer firefighters having over 15 years of experience, and the longest with over 40 years.
But anything – that could help areas or municipalities who are facing recruitment challenges – is welcomed, said Fallow.
Most volunteers are not there for the pay
Most volunteer firefighters aren’t in it for the pay. “Most are there to learn and exercise a specialized set of skills and challenge themselves in a team-based atmosphere while helping their community,” said Fallow.
He explained there is no universal solution to recruitment or retention. A combination of factors relative to a “local area is key,” said Fallow, like how various forms of tax breaks may help to a degree.
In addition, Fallow acknowledged the workforce is different compared to the past, so supporting training for younger volunteers who want to pursue full-time careers in firefighting “is not a bad thing,” if their community get a good return from their contributions as volunteers.
Municipalities can also enhance firefighting by giving firefighters the right gear, updated equipment, and purpose-built fire stations, reducing the need for fundraising, said Fallow. This not only boosts pride and professionalism for both citizens and firefighters but also improves overall effectiveness of the fire service.
“Cold Lake Fire-Rescue has been fortunate for quite some time with support from Mayor and Council and Senior Administration, helping to ensure the tools required to provide the service are available to hopefully make a difference when it is needed.”
Risks
BRFA Regional Fire Chief Dan Heney agreed, while noting the risks involved with the job for little to no pay.
“It’s pretty sobering when we take a look at the risk that our volunteer firefighters take. I'm not going to give you the big hero speech, but there are times when their lives are in danger,” said Heney. “And yet do it for almost no money.”
Thus, Heney said there is nothing more important than making firefighters feel “not idolized,” but supported and recognized by their communities.
That support can be in the form of incentives like CAFC lobbying to increase the tax credit for volunteer firefighters and volunteer search-and-rescue from $3,000 to $10,000, or tax rebate programs such as the Town of Coaldale’s, said Heney.
Heney acknowledged that incentives like municipal tax credits might not necessarily recruit people, explaining there are many other factors that affect the lowered recruitment rate, but incentives might help with retainment.
