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Trading Shifts...valuable or not?
Hi brothers and sisters! My name is John McGee with the Albuquerque Fire Dept. I'm a firefighter/paramedic and have been with AFD for about 8 years. Like so many depts nationwide, we have our issues with shrinking budgets, contentious labor/management relations, and internal strife. That being said, 95% of us understand the privlege we have in serving our communities in such a unique way as firefighting/EMS.
Over the past several years, overtime, specifically caused by excessive sick leave has been a much debated issue. Labor says sick leave is earned and FF's should be able to use it as needed......management says it's exorbitant and makes us a target for City Hall. I think both are right.
Are trades difficult to obtain in your department? Does being able to trade shifts help manage your work/life balance? For me it has been very effective although tedious and difficult at times due to the size of my department. Any thoughts, issues, suggestions?
Thanks!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by John Crabbe on
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So are you trying to sell something here then? If so, better check the terms of service of the site.
If looking for a possibility of this helping, perhaps there could be those places that could use it, but I'm leery when plugging such a "service".
For us, trading is not really an issue. We can trade one rank up or down, so FFs can trade with engineers, Engineers can trade with FFs or Lts, Lts with Engineers or Capts, etc. Trades really aren't difficult to obtain.
As for sick leave, that really doesn't delve into the trade aspect, unless your trade policy is very limited. As for who is right, in reality, Labor is. Sick time usually is earned and one accrues so many sick days a year. It is there to be used and if one uses a sick day one can and only should assume they (or immediate family) is sick. Now management can and does have the right to ask for a sick leave verification or a doctor visit if they believe sick time is being abused.
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Permalink Reply by John M. McGee on
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Absolutely not looking to sell to individual users. The software is an enterprise solution and should be provided to FF's free of charge. I've been working on this for some time and wondered if this issue has a national scope, or if its just a local or regional problem. Additionally, I sincerely want to know if the "rank and file" even see a need for software like this.
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Got ya.
I can't really speak beyond my own dept and some others close to me, but it could be more of a local or regional issue.
Like I said, for us, it is pretty simple, one rank up or down, that really is the limitation. Trade person must be able to do the other person's job, which isn't an issue for the most part. New hires have a time period before they can drive, so they can't trade with an engineer until that time is up. A person who signs off for promotion can't trade with someone of a higher rank. Other than that, no real issues.
I have seen social media used to look for trades etc, more and more. Most trades still go the old fashioned route..."Hey, need any days off"....."looking for this or that day" etc. Now we see facebook used more with a post of Looking for such and such day. So far no issues out there where more advanced software is needed.
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Permalink Reply by Don Catenacci on
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On the career FD I just retired from trades were rarely, if ever, denied unless it would short the number of paramedics. As a firefighter you could trade with MPO's and Lieutenants, as an MPO you could trade with firefighters and Lieutenants, as a Lieutenants and Captains could trade. Firefighters could only trade with MPOs if they had been checked out and approved as an acting MPO for their rig.
Trading to me was one of the most valuable perks we had. I only missed 1 Christmas program and a couple of filedtrips the entire time my kids were in school.
Sick days will always be a controversial topic. So called abusers had the chiefs going to their house to check and see if they were home. Having lived 100 miles away they came to check on me!!
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Permalink Reply by captnjak on
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I'm confused by the departments that allow trading tours between firefighters and Lieutenants. Does the firefighter assume the rank of LT for the tour? Don C says his department won't allow a firefighter to trade with an MPO unless he's checked out and approved as an MPO. But he can trade with a Lt?
Please tell me there's more to this.
As far as the OP, I think there is no or very little problem trading tours within departments and a program is not needed.
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Thanks John. Much appreciated!
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Thank you for your reply Don.We do the same type of thing here....if a driver/engineer is "upgradeable" to Lieutenant then he's eligible to trade with his current rank and one up. A person becomes upgradeable when they've satisfied the curriculum criteria that makes them eligible to test for that rank.
I too agree that trading is an invaluable asset especially in relation to being able to be an active member of your family.
The inspiration to build software to automate the process came about because of the particular dynamics of my department. A third of our guys have 5 yrs or less, and haven't had the time in to build those trusting relationships that develop into a reliable trade pool. As a result, when they need time off and are unable to get unscheduled vacation, some of them unfortunately call off sick. Admin has taken definitive steps to reduce any "abuse" whether perceived or actual, but they have not solved or made easier the ability to secure a trade.
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Thanks Cap. As I've traveled and visited departments around the country it almost seems as if the more time you have on the job, the less of an issue it is for you.
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captnjak,
Yes, if I traded with a Lieutenant I became the Lieutenant for the shift, UNLESS there was an excess LT on shift OR an LT made a trade with a firefighter to come on the shift, then they filled the slot. They would not let a probie trade with an LT because they couldn't fill the slot. They did have the right to deny a trade if the person trading couldn't fill the slot.
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10-4. Glad to see there were some restrictions in place. Personally don't much like the idea. I would think the reasons are obvious and mostly consist of the lack of formal training in supervisor's role.
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If you only knew...
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Permalink Reply by Russ on
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Unless i'm reading it wrong it appears that you brought up 2 different subjects, swaps and sick time.
my dept has no swap issues (probies cannot swap until they are off probation) but they do regulate how many you can take because of payback issues...On the subject of paybacks. If you miss (or don't do your payback) you loose your right to do swaps for a callender year from the date of the offence and must take a vacation day of you want time off...On the subject of vacation...you can sell back half of your vacation days for cash if you want to (most did in the recession-needed the cash and who could afford a vacation anyway?)
My favorite days (unless I had something planned) was mandatory holdover or what I used to call a "hostage shift" which the department didn't like because of the time and a half thing. I got pinched doing a double-double only once (only because I was at a slow station) when my BC caught up with me he was furious that I got stuck and gave me a day off
Sick leave as John Crabbe says is earned BUT when you take it my department assumes you are not really sick and if they had their way we would only get 10 paid a year.
I recall in incident where a guy called in sick but his POV (with FD sticker) was spotted in the parking lot of a bar by a passing chief who went in the bar to look for him and could not find him. SO the chief goes on a search rampage but still cannot find him, not at home, not at doctors, not at hospital. SO he goes back to his office and proceeds to write the guy up for sick time abuse when he comes back. It turns out that he parked the car in the bar's lot to walk across the street to the pharmacy and was hit by a drunk in the crosswalk. SO now he's out for a while and did come back BUT in his haste the chief forgot to NOT send the write up so that triggered a few raised eyebrows and mea-culpa from a chief that sent the letter....funny at the time but the 1980's was interesting
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