Shreveport Louisiana Firefighter Salary And Job Requirements

As the name says, Firefighters are people who literally save people or other things from fire through fighting it. They are selected among the best to risk their lives in rescue actions. Much like any other macho image profession, like policemen, who offer risking their lives just to save another. Right after hearing so much of praise about these brave individuals, you need to have developed a slight desire to become one yourself.

firefighter career summary Shreveport Louisiana
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Table Of Contents

How Much Does A Firefighter Make In Shreveport?

If you value your work, sometimes you feel like you’re not working anymore. On the other hand, passion is not enough to sustain a lifestyle. We all need bucks so we can move, after all money is everything. Consequently, in terms of selecting a career, individuals are always curious about how much they might gain from it. For a few, it is the only motivation each morning to get up and go to work. Individuals who perform community outreach do not earn much. But income is not really their basis of pleasure and satisfaction. {Let’s see how much a firefighter earns.|Without further ado, let’s figure out the earnings of a firefighter.

firefighter salary Shreveport Louisiana
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

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Somewhere around $49,000 is the mean annual income a firefighter makes. A median of about $46,000 is the median. The figures may vary depending on the what state he is in or his education degree or his skills and experience. As we go more, you will find out components affecting income.

Location Matters

Firefighter’s earnings can be decided by the place of the department you’re designated. 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 places. New York has the greatest rate among firefighters with 70% above the national mean. While Columbia pays the lowest at 38%.

firefighter average salary by state Shreveport Louisiana
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

Educational Level

To become a firefighter, one usually just needs to have studied a course related to fire science in high school. However, education is highly valued in this area. Here’s 2 main reasons why. This will show you have the required understanding as well as expertise in firefighting. Another one is for the department to spend less on you just before becoming an asset in the government. Thus, they could afford to pay you more. A bachelor’s degree or an associate’s degree in fire science will help you advance your career and earn quite a bit more. A master’s degree might help even more.

Experience

Experience is commonly a major key in determining someone’s revenue. Being a firefighter, your income can rise around 50% with experience in the area of Two decades. This is quite high when compared to other careers which commonly see a 15-20% rise in the same period of time.

Certifications

Being a fireman, you will have to learn the fundamentals of EMT to even apply for the job. Nonetheless, you can choose to pursue the medical field a bit further and be a paramedic or get advanced EMT training. Having these credentials gives you a greater chance of generating more. Besides, this also gives you another option should you decide shift careers later.

Industry

By the end of the day, your company signs your paycheck. Per BLS records, it’s not the government employers who pay out firefighters more, however it’s the private companies. Included are firms handling production in oil, production of metal products and also waste management. No matter, the local and state government are still in need of firefighting people.

Other Benefits

One of the best things about possessing a government job is that there’s a bunch of other benefits that are included with it. As a firefighter, you certainly get perks like dental and health insurance. You can also get sick leave benefits. The exact benefits differ from department to department.

As you can see, the monetary scope of a fireman is not as good as that of a health care provider. On the other hand, 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!

Shreveport Firefighter Job Outlook

firefighter job outlook Shreveport Louisiana
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

The job outlook is an important factor while choosing which profession to get into. You wouldn’t want to choose your favourite career option just to realize that it going down the drain in a few years. You will find out such info from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The career outlook for public servants is always 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 is a steady advancement of 5% for the next several years till 2024. This is the average growth rate of any normal profession. This means that there would be about 12,000 new jobs by 2024. Nevertheless, this also implies that there will be that much more individuals trying to get the job too. Hence, there will 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 advantages make up for that. It’s approximated that there might be about 100 individuals competing for the same job by 2024.

firefighter job outlook by state Shreveport Louisiana
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

How To be A Firefighter

You have to follow a particular process to join any profession. Main requirement is you need to have the necessary education. Without these requirements, hardly any employer would be happy to hire you. Being a firefighter, there are not too many education prerequisites that you need to have. Beside, education you have to pass other tests like physical, medical and legal test. We will go further in details to much better understand the prerequisites.

Education Qualification

High school diploma along with a degree in advanced schooling are the fundamental prerequisites to be qualified being a firefighter. The subjects do not matter as such. But if you have fire fighting related subjects earned, that would be very helpful. Which will provide you a backgrounder of the profession you are about to enter.

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After high school, a lot of people choose to get some formal college education in the field before they become a firefighter. You need to be at least EIGHTEEN years of age to meet the age requirement. That’s a primary reason why most of the aspirants aren’t be eligible right after graduating in high school. If you want to have options later if you opt to become a firefighter, better pick a degree with subjects in firefighting, you may need them. There are subjects in a curriculum of the degree picked that teach you how to save lives, operate machines required in firefighting and other related technicalities.

It’s optional, you may pursue a graduate studies in that same field. The graduate studies you attain can assist you land a promotion. While gaining your education, you always remember that age limit qualification of 28 to 30 years old limit for you to be qualified too. Therefore, if you want to expend most of your life as a firefighter, you shouldn’t concentrate too much on education.

Paramedic Training

All the firefighters need to have this EMT certification. The one required is the EMT-B or the EMT-Basic. This will help firefighters tend to victims in accidents or fires. A year is required to be able to finish this training. If one desires, they can decide to pursue further studies in the field Emergency Medical Services and be a paramedic. Some great benefits of entering this direction are possible upsurge in income or added edge over other candidates. There are also some medical professional firefighters who can take better care of people after they have been rescued from the fires.

Licensed to Drive Vehicle In Louisiana State

In most states, employing of firefighter needs an applicant to possess experience in driving. As a result, they need their applicants to be a licensed driver that may help them in case that person is required to drive the firetruck to the area. It also functions as an ID proof to verify the applicant’s age.

Clean Record

In most scenarios, a firefighter is compared as a policeman. They undertake a thorough background check just before they are hired. To get hired, the firefighters cannot have a criminal record. If you think you have previous records, then much better not to pursue this career as you will right away be disqualified. Individuals who were pardoned for their crimes are usually accepted, however, not all fire departments acknowledge such individuals.

Shreveport Physical Requirements

Firefighters need to be physically fit to execute thier job always. They must have the high upper body strength in order to lift objects and individuals to help them in rescue cases. They are also supposed to have the high endurance to deal with the excessive running around they must do. All firefighters undergo rigorous physical assessments both in the academy and before it.

Shreveport Medical Specifications

Firefighters must deal with a lot of suffocating cases. They’re normally provided with masks to help them cope with such cases but not always are they so fortunate. If you have history in your respiratory, that will affect your efficiency. Thus, applicants are checked properly for any such conditions which may cause them harm in such situations.

There a lot of boxes that need to be ticked while choosing a firefighter. Without a doubt, the list is long, so learn how long will it take you become a firefighter!

What Does a Shreveport Firefighter Do?

Firefighters are your daily heroes who work together to set out fires as well as help people when they get stuck in such scenarios. They’re around in rescue missions you see in common incidents, not just fire. Just like what you see in films, a firefighter saving a kitten in a tree. Aside from the common job they are doing, firefighters help teach individuals to prevent fire from taking place. In many cases, they are supposed to examine causes of fire and dig deep in to the case because of the chance of an arsonist.

Putting Out Fires

This is the main function of firefighters. They are always in check waiting for a call for their assistance. When they get a call, they rush to the location in one of their firetrucks which may contain hoses or ladders. Some of the fire trucks are simply meant to deliver injured people.

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At the scene of the fire, every person has a different job. Some people are in charge of handling the ladder as well as rescue actions. Others are in charge of controlling the water flow as well as extinguishing the fire. Similar to any other team that has a leader ordering the operation, their group is headed by their commanding officer. They work in shifts, for that reason, each shifting unit has its corresponding officers.

Rescuing People

All firefighters must be qualified as an EMT. Since the main 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 taking care of those who are stuck inside the fires. However, not all rescue procedures that the firefighters take on are fire related. Firemen or maybe firewomen are the first on the scene with a few police officers wherever there are any casualties. These casualties may be caused due to natural disasters, motor accidents or several other reasons. The firefighters are supposed to work together and rescue the victims from additional harm. Sometimes a firefighter is also a qualified paramedic assisting them provide better healthcare to the victims.

Teaching People

Fire science is among the skills a firefighter has. Their know-how may vary as to how further firefighters pursue this field. By sharing what they know, they help individuals by teaching them how to prevent fire from happening. This is normally performed right after they visit a fire site as well as extinguish it. In a few other instances also, they go to schools or other public places to educate and sometime do demonstration on what to undertake in case of fire.

Investigating Fires

To teach people regarding how to avoid fires, the firemen/firewomen have to first find the cause of the fire. They should distinguish what caused it so they can prevent further such cases. Instances like criminals set the first to explode are probable. It is then the task of the firefighters to check out and provide more hints to the police officers about who started it. There are firefighters who are also called arson investigators which specialize fire investigation. 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. While extinguishing fires in various areas, they ignite one in our hearts. So, if you think you would like to be like them, begin filling up the list!