San Francisco California Firefighter Salary And Job Requirements

By definition, firefighters are professionally trained people to save lives and properties in case of fire. They’re strong individuals who can perform rescue actions with style as well as panache. Just like any other macho image profession, like policemen, who offer risking their lives to save another. You see the accolades these professionals get, would you not like to become like these bold firefighters?

firefighter career summary San Francisco California
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Table Of Contents

How Much Does A Firefighter Make In San Francisco?

People express that work doesn’t seem like work anymore if you love what you are doing. 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. That’s why when you go with a profession to pursue, it’s unquestionable that you think also how much money you can make from it. For a few, it’s the only motivation each morning to get up and go to work. Individuals who carry out community outreach don’t earn much. But income is not really their basis of pleasure and satisfaction. {Let us find out how much a firefighter earns.|Without further ado, let us find out the earnings of a firefighter.

firefighter salary San Francisco California
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

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The mean yearly income of a firefighter is around $49,000 with the median around $46,000. There are various factors that affect this number including the size of the population and the education that a firefighter has undergone. Below is a listing of these aspects and how they can increase or decrease your salary being a firefighter.

Location Matters

The location of the fire department is a major aspect in deciding someone’s income. Factored to that are the need of the population of fighters. A place exactly where impulsive wildfires are likely, have a higher need for firemen than any other locations. 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 San Francisco California
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

Educational Level

In case you have undergone a study in fire science in high school, you will be qualified to apply as a firefighter. Nevertheless, education is extremely valued in this area. There are two main reasons for this. This shows you have the needed understanding as well as know-how in firefighting. Another one is for the department to spend less on you just before becoming an asset in the government. Resulting to paying you more. A bachelor’s degree or an associate’s degree in fire science will help you advance your career and earn a lot more. Just how much more when you have a graduate credentials in firefighting.

Length of Work Experience

Experience is commonly a major key in deciding someone’s salary. If a firefighter has a field experience of approximately 20 years, his income may rise to 50% This is quite high when compared to other careers which usually see a 15-20% rise in the same length of time.

Certificates and Training

Even the basics of EMT, it’s still required by a fireman. On the other hand, you may choose to pursue the medical field a bit further and be a paramedic or get advanced EMT training. Having a deeper list of certifications and trainings give you a chance of acquiring a bigger income. Besides, this also gives you another choice should you opt shift careers later.

Industry

At the end of the day, your employer signs your paycheck. Based on the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the highest paying employers for this job are not the government but private contractors. Included are companies dealing with production in oil, production of metal products and also waste management. Regardless, the local as well as state government are still needing firefighting individuals.

Other Benefits

In case you are a government worker, one of the advantages you receive is the benefits you could claim. Being a firefighter, you obviously get benefits like dental and medical insurance. You may also acquire sick leave benefits. But then again, advantages may differ from what department you are into.

Being a medical doctor may have a higher earning in comparison with being a fireman. Nevertheless, at the end of the day, you then become a hero in someone’s eyes. Learn the prerequisites to becoming a firefighter and be the man, the fireman, the savior!

San Francisco Firefighter Career Outlook

firefighter job outlook San Francisco California
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

The job outlook is an essential factor while deciding which profession to get into. You would not want to pick your favorite career choice just to realize that it going down the drain in a couple of years. You could find out such information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The career outlook for public servants is definitely on the rise since due to the growing population. So, what does the future hold for the common fireman? Let us find.

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There are presently about 300,000 firemen employed in the USA. There’s a steady advancement of 5% for the next several years till 2024. This is the average progress rate of any normal career. 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 trying to get the job as well. As a result, there will be some competition. This is primarily due to 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 San Francisco California
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

Steps To Becoming a Firefighter

You need to follow a particular procedure to join any profession. The most significant part of these processes is to accomplish the education requirements. You have to have your diploma or you’ll never get hired. Being a firefighter, there aren’t too many education requirements that you need to possess. Alongside, education you must pass other exams such as physical, medical and legal test. We will go further in details to better understand the requirements.

Educational Requirements

The basic prerequisite becoming a firefighter is to complete high school and get a relevant degree. The subjects do not matter as such. However , if you have fire fighting related subjects earned, that would be useful. It will also teach you how to become a more effective firefighter.

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Right after high school, most people choose to get some formal college education in the field just before they become a firefighter. The minimum age qualification is 18 years. Thus, one could not 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. There are subjects in a curriculum of the degree chosen that show you how to save lives, operate devices required in firefighting and also other related technical issues.

It’s optional, you may pursue a graduate studies in that same field. The graduate studies you attain can help you land a promotion. Simultaneously, keep in mind that the maximum age requirement is kept at 28-30 years of age. That is why you should not over concentrate on getting too much education in order to meet the requirements.

Required Training in Paramedic

Each and every firefighter is required to present an EMT certification. The one needed is the EMT-B or the EMT-Basic. This certifies firefighters that they know very well what to complete in case of fires or in accidents. The training may last for up to 12 months. If one desires, they could decide to pursue further studies in the field Emergency Medical Services and become a paramedic. This helps them gain an edge over other applicants and hopefully, a higher income. In most cases, fire victims rescued are attended by medical professional which are firefighters too.

California State Driving License

In many states, employing of firefighter needs an applicant to have experience in driving. Thus, they need their candidates to be a licensed driver which might help them when person is required to drive the firetruck to the location. It also serves as an ID proof to verify the applicant’s age.

Free of Legal Record

In a few scenarios, a firefighter is compared as a policeman. Just like policemen, firefighters also undertake lifestyle check just before getting employed. To get employed, the firefighters cannot have a criminal record. If you think you have previous records, then better to not pursue this profession as you will immediately be disqualified. Individuals who were pardoned for their crimes are usually accepted, nonetheless, not all fire departments acknowledge such individuals.

San Francisco Physical Prerequisites

One of the main characteristics that a firefighter should have is physical strength. They must have the high upper body strength in order to lift objects and people to help them in rescue situations. Not just body strength is need to have, firefighter’s endurance should be high as they must deal a lot of aspects like running even in harsh environment. Nobody become a firefighter without undergoing heavy and extremely thorough physical examinations.

San Francisco Medical Prerequisites

Suffocations in rescue missions happen and firefighters learn how to deal with it. Firefighters have face masks to overcome those scenarios but even so, if have respiratory condition, this might hinder your chances. In case you have history in your respiratory, that would affect your efficiency. Therefore, candidates are checked appropriately for any such diseases which may cause them harm in such scenarios.

There a number of boxes that must be ticked while picking out a firefighter. If you really feel you tick these boxes, then go and see how long it will take you to become a firefighter!

What Does a San Francisco Firefighter Do?

Firefighters are your everyday heroes who work together to set out fires and also help people when they get stuck in such circumstances. They’re also in command of rescue operations for common daily troubles. The same as what you see in films, a firefighter saving a kitten in a tree. Aside from the common job they do, firefighters help teach individuals to prevent fire from going on. In certain cases, they are supposed to check sources of fire and dig deep in to the case because of the possibility of an arsonist.

Extinguishing Fires

This is the major function of firefighters. When on-duty, these people stay in their firehouse to take action to a call as quickly as possible. When a distress call is acquired, firefighters together with their tools rush to the fire location to extinguish it. Some of the fire trucks are just meant to deliver harmed people.

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At the scene of the fire, every person has a different job. A particular firefighter maybe in control of handling the ladder and hose. Another firefighter is solely for extinguishing the fire, while other carry out the rescue of fire victims. Just like any other team that has a leader ordering the operation, their group is in the direction by their commanding officer. They work in shifts, because of that, every shifting unit has its corresponding officers.

Rescuing People

All firefighters are required to be qualified as an EMT. This is necessary since one of the main duties of the firefighters are to rescue people. A firefighter may need this technical abilities if a victim is trapped in fires. On the other hand, not all rescue procedures that the firefighters undertake are fire related. Firemen or even firewomen are the first on the scene with a few police officers wherever there are any casualties. Casualties possibly caused natural phenomena or road crashes. Firefighter should work to save the victim. Sometimes a firefighter is also a qualified paramedic helping them provide better healthcare to the victims.

Teach People

Fire science is among the expertise a firefighter has. Their know-how may vary as to how more firefighters pursue this field. Therefore, they help a lot of the people by educating them about ways to avoid fires. This is normally performed just after they visit a fire site as well as extinguish it. Otherwise, they also visit schools and other areas to actively teach individuals about fires, how to prevent fires and if necessary, how to extinguish them.

Fire Investigation

To teach people regarding how to avoid fires, the firemen/firewomen have to first find the source of the fire. Understanding the causes can help firefighters avoid fire for the same situation happen again. Cases like criminals set the first to blow up are possible. It is then the task of the firefighters to check out and provide more clues to the law enforcement officers about who started it. Firefighters expert in investigations associated with fire are called arson investigators. Along with the law enforcement, they work to investigate possible arsonists.

As you can see, there is a large number of reasons to call these people our everyday heroes. They do save lives by extinguishing fires and they develop also our admiration to them. Consequently, if you feel you want to be like them, start filling up the list!