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Lines in the Sand
The mascot of our Tower Ladder, like so many other companies, is Yosemite Sam. It is one of his many cartoon appearances that gave me the name for this blog. OF course it is the one with Bugs Bunny daring him to cross repeated lines in the sand, which he does, eventually falling off a cliff. For those of us old enough to remember the Gulf of Sidra, we know that countries often draw similar lines in the sand. I am however writing about lines drawn in the sand right inside the firehouse and wondering at what point we have indeed fallen off the cliff. These lines often happen with discipline or the lack thereof.
We had a recent incident with two newer members. They did something wrong, broke something that wasn’t theirs and had sentimental value to much of the department, tried to conceal what they did and got caught. This lead to much speculation on discipline, by the general membership. There were calls for their immediate dismissal. There were disputes between officers on how this was handled. In the end a punishment was given out, that included multiple steps.
One member met his steps in order and in a timely manner, the other did not. The one who did not simply ignored (or at least appeared to do so) every one of his tasks. This was the first line in the sand. He was given a specific deadline for his first step, another line in the sand. He failed to meet the deadline, crossing that line. He was given one more day and this time complied. He was told to do two tasks; he did neither crossing another line in the sand. He was given another deadline for those tasks; he did one of the two, crossing another line. He did not tell the member assigned to supervise his deadlines; he went directly to the chief and claimed he didn’t have the time to complete his tasks in one day (despite having ignored them for weeks). The Chief drew another line in the sand and told him he could do the second task the next day OR THE DAY AFTER. The night that he didn’t have the time, he continued to hang out at the station for at least another half hour. He then went out on a date with his girlfriend.
As of this writing, I have not heard if any more lines in the sand have been drawn but I am sure that if they have they were crossed defiantly. The real question is, should we be drawing these lines over and over again when it comes to Firefighter discipline and if so, what should be done when a line is crossed? In the case of Bugs and Sam, Bugs could levitate as he stepped out over the cliff causing Sam t fall. Can we levitate like Bugs, or will we too fall off that cartoon cliff?
We had a recent incident with two newer members. They did something wrong, broke something that wasn’t theirs and had sentimental value to much of the department, tried to conceal what they did and got caught. This lead to much speculation on discipline, by the general membership. There were calls for their immediate dismissal. There were disputes between officers on how this was handled. In the end a punishment was given out, that included multiple steps.
One member met his steps in order and in a timely manner, the other did not. The one who did not simply ignored (or at least appeared to do so) every one of his tasks. This was the first line in the sand. He was given a specific deadline for his first step, another line in the sand. He failed to meet the deadline, crossing that line. He was given one more day and this time complied. He was told to do two tasks; he did neither crossing another line in the sand. He was given another deadline for those tasks; he did one of the two, crossing another line. He did not tell the member assigned to supervise his deadlines; he went directly to the chief and claimed he didn’t have the time to complete his tasks in one day (despite having ignored them for weeks). The Chief drew another line in the sand and told him he could do the second task the next day OR THE DAY AFTER. The night that he didn’t have the time, he continued to hang out at the station for at least another half hour. He then went out on a date with his girlfriend.
As of this writing, I have not heard if any more lines in the sand have been drawn but I am sure that if they have they were crossed defiantly. The real question is, should we be drawing these lines over and over again when it comes to Firefighter discipline and if so, what should be done when a line is crossed? In the case of Bugs and Sam, Bugs could levitate as he stepped out over the cliff causing Sam t fall. Can we levitate like Bugs, or will we too fall off that cartoon cliff?
Add a Comment
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Comment by John Crabbe on November 7, 2009 at 9:15pm
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The member found time to be in the station surfing the internet and updating his facebook page but still has not completed his tasks because he is too busy. When told by the member supervising his tasks, he told them he would call the Chief and tell him he was too busy.
Besides the rest of the stuff already stated, there should be no excuse after such a comment is made. If the membership knows what is going on and this clown still refuses and moronically states he will just tell the chief he needs more time, is wrong. This should be brought up to the chief and shed some light on the situation. I would say if no action is still taken by the chief, then I would say it is time for an officer's meeting to discuss the situation at hand.
I agree with having a formal process and SOG's dealing with discipline, but when some clown spends time F,N off on the computer vs completing his tasks and then says he will ask for more time is BS. If the chief can't see the issue, then he needs a spine too.
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Comment by Oldman on November 7, 2009 at 2:50pm
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I N T E G R I T Y
To #1; do something to someone, or break something as in this case that didn't belong to them, and #2; to not man up to it speaks loudly about their lack of the above. One tries to make amends by doing what is dealt out as discipline has a little more than the one who has not tried, as you say it appears.
The Chief also has an integrity issue. If you are going to discipline someone, and do not follow through, then your integrity is lost to those you supervise.
It is quite obvious that integrity is no longer of value in today's society, not just in the fire service.
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Comment by Doug on November 6, 2009 at 3:08am
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This guy needs to go. Period.
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Comment by Alan Shaw on November 5, 2009 at 8:26pm
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While I wrote this blog about a specific incident in my department, it really is a more general thing. I have seen these lines in the sand both at my own department and at other departments on numerous occasions. I think this problem probably rears it's ugly head in departments all over the country at one time or an other.
As an aside, I recently found out that another line in the sand has been crossed in this instance. The member found time to be in the station surfing the internet and updating his facebook page but still has not completed his tasks because he is too busy. When told by the member supervising his tasks, he told them he would call the Chief and tell him he was too busy.
In my book one does not call and TELL the Chief anything. One is TOLD things by the Chief.
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Comment by Paul Montpetit on November 5, 2009 at 6:17pm
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As my first Chief told us once...."You Volunteer to get in and you can volunteer to get out...inbetween times you do as you are told." Seems pretty simple to me....Do it or there's the door......Period...no more discussion. What bothers me more than being sneeky about what happened is the dishonesty involved...if he cannot be trusted with this can he be trusted to do the right thing in a Fire...? I would have some serious doubts...I don't think you need this member to be around anymore......Stay safe and as I always say....remember to Keep the Faith.....Paul
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Comment by Jack/dt on November 5, 2009 at 9:54am
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I wouldn't blame the wrong-doer, I would blame the Chief. Allowing the situation to persist, in defiance of the Chief of Department is absurd and inexcusable. If this person can blatantly ignore the orders of his officers and then the chief, what will his response be on the fireground? Fire him.
For starters there should be a clear cut, written disciplinary process rather than an arbitrary one offered up for each occurrence. Having broken department property the process should have determined the punishment. Failure to comply with the punishment would then lead to the next step in the process ending with dismissal of the individual.
When retaining members becomes more important than retaining good firefighters (ones that follow orders) you cease operating as a fire department and operate as a social club. Never a good idea in my opinion. I would much rather see feelings hurt than people.
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The second guy has had MANY chances already. What does this tell you about his character? The first guy screwed up, and knew, he paid the price as an honorable person would and should, he's a good guy.
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Comment by lutan1 on November 5, 2009 at 5:19am
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No.
Provided there is very clear guidelines, SOP's, etc around expectations and so on, state it once, make sure it is clear and understood and go from there.
How many chances does one get? We revolve around discipline, guidelines, SOP's, trust and all sorts of other attributes and traits. This member has chosen to ignore them.
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