By definition, firefighters are expertly trained individuals to save lives and properties in case of fire. They are strong people who can do rescue operations with style as well as panache. Often loved by girls, these professionals aren’t afraid of anything as well as literally lay down their lives everyday like policemen. Right after hearing so much of praise about these brave people, you need to have developed a slight desire to become one yourself.
Table Of Contents
- Average firefighter salary
- Firefighter career outlook
- How to become a firefighter
- Firefighter job description
How Much Does A Firefighter Make In Lawrence?
If you value your work, sometimes you feel like you’re not working anymore. Nonetheless, passion is not enough to sustain a lifestyle. We all need money so we can move, after all money is crucial. That’s why when you select a profession to pursue, it’s unquestionable that you think also how much money you could make from it. For a few, it’s the only motivation each morning to get up and go to work. People who do community outreach don’t earn much. However, they do have a sense of achievement at the end of the day. {Let us find out how much a firefighter earns.|Without more ado, let’s find out the wages of a firefighter.
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The mean annual income of a firefighter is around $49,000 with the median around $46,000. There are various factors which affect this number including the size of the population and also the education that a firefighter has been through. Below is a list of these factors and how they are able to increase or decrease your wage being a firefighter.
Location Matters
The location of the fire department is a major aspect in figuring out someone’s income. This is because of a number of aspects like – population size, availability of firemen and frequency of fighters. A place where impulsive wildfires are likely, have a higher need for firemen than other places. Currently, New York pays their firemen the most at around 70% above the national mean. On the other hand, Columbia pays the cheapest at 38% below the national average.
Education Qualification
To become a firefighter, one usually just needs to have studied a course relevant to fire science in high school. On the other hand, education is highly valued in this field. Here’s Two reasons why. This will show you have the needed understanding as well as expertise in firefighting. The 2nd is that the government will need to spend drastically less on you to develop you as an asset. As a result, they could afford to pay you more. In case you have a degree, whether it’s a bachelor’s or an associate’s degree, that will help you acquire added advantage. A master’s degree may help a lot more.
Length of Work Experience
Work experience is undoubtedly the determining factor of how much an employee must receive. As being a firefighter, your income can rise about 50% with experience in the field of Twenty years. This is extremely high when compared to other careers which commonly see a 15-20% rise in the same amount of time.
Accreditations
Being a fireman, you will have to know the basics of EMT to even apply for the job. Nevertheless, you can pick to pursue the medical field a bit more and be a paramedic or get advanced EMT training. Having a deeper list of accreditations and trainings provide you with a chance of acquiring a bigger wage. Besides, this also provides you another choice should you decide shift careers later.
Industry
By the end of the day, your company signs your paycheck. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the highest paying employers for this job aren’t the government but private contractors. This includes firms which deal with waste management, coal and oil production, and metal product manufacturing. Nevertheless, the local and the state government still employ the most number of firefighters.
Other Benefits
In case you are a government employee, an advantage you receive is the benefits you can claim. You get the services like insurance plan in your health or even dental check up. But you also get covered sick leaves and reimbursement for some specific tuition fees. The exact advantages vary from department to department.
As you could see, the financial scope of a fireman isn’t as nice as that of a doctor. Nonetheless, at the end of the day, you become a hero in someone’s eyes. Learn the prerequisites to becoming a firefighter and be the man, the fireman, the savior!
Lawrence Firefighter Job Outlook
The job outlook is an important factor while determining which profession to get into. You wouldn’t want to choose your favourite career option simply to realize that it going down the drain in a couple of years. You could find out such info from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The career outlook for public servants is obviously on the rise since due to the growing population. So, what does the future hold for the common fireman? Let us find.
[asd_program_button /]There are currently about 300,000 firemen employed in the USA. There’s a steady progress of 5% for the next few years till 2024. This is the average growth rate of any normal career. This means that there would be about 12,000 new jobs by 2024. But, this also implies that there would be that much more individuals hoping to get the job also. Thus, there would be some competition. This is primarily due to the low education requirements and the attractions of a public service job. The pay might not be quite high, however the benefits make up for that. It’s estimated that there may be about 100 individuals competing for the same job by 2024.
Steps To Becoming a Firefighter
Much like any other expert career to pursue, a procedure is imperative to follow. Main requirement is you need to have the necessary education. You should have your diploma or you will never get hired. Being a firefighter, there are not too many education prerequisites that you need to have. Nonetheless, there are a lot of other requirements such as physical, medical as well as legal that one must have to be approved for being a firefighter. Let’s explore these in detail.
Educational Qualification
High school diploma along with a degree in higher education are the basic prerequisites to be qualified being a firefighter. The subjects usually do not matter as such. But if you have fire fighting related subjects earned, that would be very helpful. That will provide you a backgrounder of the profession you are about to go into.
[asd_program_search_bar /]A lot of those who intended to be a firefighter, they decide to pursue a degree in college right after earning their diploma in high school. The minimum age requirement is EIGHTEEN years. Thus, one cannot elect to be a firefighter right out of high school. If you want to have choices later if you opt to become a firefighter, much better pick a degree with subjects in firefighting, you may need them. Courses that show you how to save people, control hydraulic equipment such as ladders or other related stuff are a major plus.
If wanted, you can also decide 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. Simultaneously, keep in mind that the maximum age requirement is kept at 28-30 years old. That is why you must not over concentrate on having too much education in order to qualify.
Paramedic Training
Each and every firefighter is required to present an EMT certification. The one needed is the EMT-B or the EMT-Basic. This helps firefighters tend to victims in accidents or fires. The training might last for up to 1 year. Should you chose to become a paramedic at later time, you should acquire education in the field of Emergency Medical Services. This will help them get an edge over other candidates and hopefully, a better earnings. Additionally, there are some medical professional firefighters who are able to take better care of individuals after they have been rescued from the fires.
Qualified to Drive Vehicle In Massachusetts State
Many states require the applicants to be able to drive. A driving license to every candidate is necessary so they can be useful in case of unexpected emergency where for an instance no other fire truck driver is available. It also serves as an ID proof to verify the applicant’s age.
Clean Record
Firefighters are vetted almost as thoroughly as police officers. Just like policemen, firefighters also undertake life-style check before getting employed. It absolutely needed that an aspiring firefighters must have a clean record, no criminal record. If you think you possess previous records, then much better to not pursue this career as you will right away be disqualified. People who were pardoned for their crimes are commonly accepted, nevertheless, not all fire departments admit such people.
Lawrence Physical Requirements
One of the main features that a firefighter must have is physical strength. They need to have the high upper body strength in order to lift objects and individuals to help them in rescue situations. They are also supposed to possess the high endurance to deal with the excessive running around they should do. No one become a firefighter without undergoing heavy and extremely thorough physical assessments.
Free From Medical Ailments
Firefighters should cope with a lot of suffocating cases. They’re usually supplied with masks to help them deal with such cases however, not always are they so fortunate. When you have history in your respiratory, that will affect your efficiency. That is why it’s a must that an applicant should be clear from any of that respiratory conditions.
When you fill up the forms, a lot of boxes need to be marked. If you really feel you tick these boxes, then go and see how long it will take you to be a firefighter!
Lawrence Firefighter Job Description
Firefighters are the unsung heroes who risk their lives just to save other lives. They’re also in control of rescue actions for common daily challenges. This means that the image of firefighters saving a kitten stuck on a tree often shown on televisions is really true. Aside from the usual job they do, firefighters help teach people to avoid fire from occurring. They also do the investigation as to the reasons of fire, its source or cause.
Extinguishing Fires
Certainly, fire extinguishing is their primary job. When on-duty, these people stay in their firehouse to take action to a call as soon as possible. When a distress call is received, firefighters together with their devices rush to the fire location to extinguish it. A few of the fire trucks are just meant to deliver harmed people.
[asd_program_button /]Firefighting is a team work. Each and every member already has its designated job. Some people are in charge of handling the ladder and rescue operations. Another firefighter is only for extinguishing the fire, while other carry out the rescue of fire victims. These people work under the control of their respected commanding officers. They work in shifts, for that reason, each shifting unit has its corresponding officers.
Saving People
All firefighters must be qualified as an EMT. Since the primary job of the rescuer would be to save lives, it is vital that a firefighter has this EMT. Most of the time this comes in handy when looking after those who are stuck inside the fires. Having said that, not all rescue procedures that the firefighters carry out are fire related. There are situations that a fireman comes first in the scene. Casualties maybe caused natural phenomena or road accidents. The firefighters are supposed to work together and save the victims from additional harm. This is where a firefighters know-how in EMT comes in handy.
Teach People
Firefighters are commonly knowledgeable in fire sciences. The amount of knowledge depends on which degree they have pursued in the area or which course they have studied. By sharing what they know, they help individuals by educating them how to avoid fire from going on. This is commonly performed right after they visit a fire site and extinguish it. In a few other instances also, they visit schools or other public areas to teach and sometime perform demonstration on what to do in the event of fire.
Fire Investigation
It’s also important to know the source of fire. They should identify what caused it so they can prevent further such cases. Cases like criminals set the first to explode are possible. Working together with law enforcement officers, it’s firefighter’s job to determine what causes the fire or who possibly started it. Firefighters expert in investigations related to fire are called arson investigators. They work with the police to catch arsonists.
As you could see, there is a large number of reasons to call these people our everyday heroes. While extinguishing fires in different locations, they ignite one in our hearts. So, if you feel you want to be like them, start filling up the list!