Lansing Michigan Firefighter Salary And Job Requirements

As the name suggests, Firefighters are individuals who literally save people or some other things from fire through fighting it. They are strong people who can do rescue actions with style as well as panache. Often loved by women, these pros aren’t scared of anything and literally lay down their lives everyday just like policemen. Right after hearing so much of praise regarding these brave people, you must have developed a slight desire to become one yourself.

firefighter career summary Lansing Michigan
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

Table Of Contents

How Much Does A Firefighter Make In Lansing?

If you value your work, sometimes you really feel like you are not working anymore. Having said that, passion is not more than enough to sustain a lifestyle. We all need money so we can move, after all money is everything. Therefore, with regards to selecting a profession, individuals are always curious about how much they might gain out of it. For some, it’s the only motivation each morning to get up and go to work. People in the community service sector don’t get paid as much. However, they do have a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day. {Let us see how much a firefighter earns.|Without more ado, let’s determine the income of a firefighter.

firefighter salary Lansing Michigan
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

[asd_program_button /]

The mean yearly income of a firefighter is around $49,000 with the median around $46,000. The figures may vary based on the what state he is in or his education degree or his abilities and experience. Below is a list of these aspects and how they can increase or decrease your salary as a firefighter.

Location Matters

The location of the fire department is a main factor in deciding someone’s earnings. This is due to a few aspects like – population size, availability of firemen as well as frequency of fighters. A place exactly where impulsive wildfires are likely, have a higher need for firemen than any other areas. New York has the greatest rate among firefighters with 70% above the national mean. While Columbia pays the cheapest at 38%.

firefighter average salary by state Lansing Michigan
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

Education Level

To become a firefighter, one normally just needs to have studied a course relevant to fire science in high school. Nevertheless, education is extremely valued in this field. Here’s 2 reasons why. This will show you have the needed understanding and know-how in firefighting. The 2nd is that the government will have to invest considerably less on you to develop you being an asset. Resulting to paying you more. A bachelor’s degree or an associate’s degree in fire science can help you advance your career and earn quite a bit more. A master’s degree might help a lot more.

Working Experience

Experience is commonly a major key in determining someone’s salary. In case a firefighter has a field experience of approximately 20 years, his income may rise up to 50% That percentage is quite as compared to other job which is at 15% to 20% even they have the same duration of experience.

Certifications

Even the fundamentals of EMT, it’s still required by a fireman. Nevertheless, you can pick to pursue the medical field a bit more and become a paramedic or get advanced EMT training. Having a deeper list of certifications and trainings provide you with a chance of acquiring a bigger wage. Besides, this also provides you another option should you opt shift careers later.

Industry

At the end of the day, your employer signs your paycheck. Per BLS records, it’s not the government employers who pay firefighters more, however it is the private contractors. Included are companies coping with production in oil, production of metal products and also waste management. Regardless, the local as well as state government are still needing firefighting people.

Other Benefits

Among the best things about possessing a government career is that there’s a bunch of other advantages that come with it. As being a firefighter, you certainly get benefits like dental and medical insurance. But you also get covered sick leaves as well as reimbursement for some specific tuition fees. The exact advantages differ from department to department.

As being a physician may have a higher earning as compared with being a fireman. Nevertheless, by the end of the day, you become a hero in someone’s eyes. Consequently, if you would like to be that hero, find out the prerequisites to be a firefighter now!

Lansing Firefighter Job Outlook

firefighter job outlook Lansing Michigan
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

The job outlook is a crucial aspect while deciding which profession to get into. You would not want to pick your favourite career option just to realize that it going down the drain in a few years. You can find out such info from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The career outlook for public servants is obviously on the rise since because of the ever-growing population. So, what does the future hold for the common fireman? Let’s find out.

[asd_program_button /]

There are currently about 300,000 firemen employed in america. There is a steady advancement of 5% for the next couple of years till 2024. This is the average growth rate of any normal profession. Which means that there would be about 12,000 new jobs by 2024. Nonetheless, this also means that there would be that much more people hoping to get the job also. Thus, there would be some competition. This is mainly because of the low education specifications and also the attractions of a public service job. The pay might not be quite high, but the benefits make up for that. It’s estimated that there might be about 100 people competing for the same position by 2024.

firefighter job outlook by state Lansing Michigan
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

How To be A Firefighter

You need to follow a certain process to join any profession. The most important part of these processes would be to accomplish the education specifications. You need to have your diploma or you’ll never get hired. Although education is the main requirement, you should not be worried simply because employer just needs at least 1 degree completed. Beside, education you need to pass other exams like physical, medical and legal test. Let us explore these in detail.

Educational Requirements

High school diploma along with a degree in advanced schooling are the fundamental requirements to be qualified being a firefighter. Subjects you earned do not matter much. Nevertheless, acquiring some courses in fire sciences does help your cause. It will also teach you how to become a more effective firefighter.

[asd_program_search_bar /]

A lot of those who intended to become a firefighter, they elect to pursue a degree in college right after earning their diploma in high school. You must be at least 18 years of age to meet the age requirement. As a result, one cannot opt to become a firefighter right out of high school. College degrees in fire sciences are a huge plus in case you are planning to be a part of the field. Courses which teach you how to save people, handle hydraulic equipment like ladders or other related things are a major plus.

If wanted, you can also opt to finish an associate’s, bachelor’s or a master’s degree in the same. The former ones are needed to get promoted to greater positions. At the same time, remember that the maximum age qualification is kept at 28-30 years of age. That is why you should not over focus on getting too much education to be able to qualify.

Paramedic Training

All of the firefighters should have this EMT certification. It can be either of these Two, EMT-B or the EMT-Basic. This certifies firefighters that they know what to perform in case there is fires or in accidents. One year is required to be able to complete this training. Should you decided to be a paramedic at later time, you should earn education in the area of Emergency Medical Services. This will help them get an edge over other applicants and hopefully, a better salary. In some instances, fire victims rescued are attended by medical professional that are firefighters too.

Licensed to Drive Vehicle In Michigan State

In most states, hiring of firefighter requires an applicant to have experience in driving. As a result, they require their applicants to be a licensed driver that may help them when person is needed to drive the firetruck to the area. The driver’s license also verify other information needed in application just like for instance the age.

Legal Track Record

Firefighters are vetted almost as thoroughly as police officers. Just like policemen, firefighters also undergo life-style check before getting hired. To get employed, the firefighters could not have a criminal history. If its found that there was one, or the firefighter was previously detained, then that applicant is promptly disqualified. Having said that, there are cases where a pardoned individual of his offences are approved however, not all department practice that.

Physical Fitness

One of the main characteristics that a firefighter needs to have is physical strength. Cases like lifting fire victims or even objects to free victims arise much of the time in rescue tasks, therefore, firefighter’s upper body strength is crucial. Not only body strength is need, firefighter’s endurance must be high as they need to deal lots of factors like running even in harsh surroundings. No one become a firefighter without going through heavy and extremely thorough physical examinations.

Free From Medical Conditions

Suffocations in rescue missions happen and firefighters know how to deal with it. Firefighters have masks to conquer those circumstances but even so, if have respiratory condition, this might hinder your chances. People having respiratory problems could not handle such heavy machinery with precision under suffocating circumstances. Thus, candidates are checked properly for any such conditions that may cause them harm in such scenarios.

There a number of boxes that must be ticked while choosing a firefighter. Certainly, the list is long, so find out how long will it take you become a firefighter!

Lansing Firefighter Work Description

Firefighters are the unsung heroes who risk their lives just to save other lives. They are also in command of rescue actions for common everyday troubles. The same as what you see in films, a firefighter saving a kitten in a tree. Apart from the usual job they do, firefighters help educate individuals to avoid fire from taking place. They also perform the investigation as to the reasons of fire, its source or cause.

Putting Out Fires

Clearly, fire extinguishing is their major task. They are always in check waiting for a call for their assistance. When a distress call is got, firefighters together with their tools rush to the fire area to extinguish it. There are also fire trucks that are used for transporting injured fire victims.

[asd_program_button /]

Firefighting is a team work. Each member already has its given job. A particular firefighter maybe in control of handling the ladder and hose. Others are responsible for controlling the water flow as well as extinguishing the fire. Similar to any other team that has a leader commanding the operation, their group is in the direction by their commanding officer. Since they work in shifts, each unit has their own commanding officer.

Rescuing People

All firefighters must be qualified as an EMT. This is important given that one of the main duties of the firefighters are to rescue people. A firefighter might need this technical abilities if a victim is trapped in fires. Not all rescue operations are fire related. Firemen or firewomen are the first on the scene with a few police officers wherever there are any casualties. These casualties might be caused due to natural disasters, motor accidents or several other reasons. Firefighter needs to work to save the victim. Oftentimes a firefighter is also a knowledgeable paramedic helping them provide better healthcare to the victims.

Teaching People

Fire science is one of the expertise a firefighter possesses. The amount of know-how depends on which degree they have pursued in the area or which course they have studied. Therefore, they help most of the people by teaching them about ways to prevent fires. This is usually carried out just after they visit a fire site as well as extinguish it. In some other instances also, they go to schools or other public sites to educate and sometime perform demo on what to undertake in case there is fire.

Investigating Fires

To teach people on how to avoid fires, the firemen/firewomen have to first find the source of the fire. Knowing the causes can assist firefighters prevent fire for the same situation happen again. Sometimes, it’s possible that criminals with vicious intent set such fires. Working together with police officers, it’s firefighter’s job to determine what causes the fire or who possibly started it. There are firefighters who are also known as arson investigators which specialize fire investigation. Together with the law enforcement, they work to investigate possible arsonists.

There is no doubt why we must not call them our life savers and unsung heroes. While extinguishing fires in various places, they ignite one in our hearts. Consequently, if learning about their duties fired you up, see what education prerequisites you should become one!