ptholt

When i was 18 and had just moved to the south of england i went to what i suppose you would call basic training for the fire service.

It didn't take me long to find i wasn't cut out for it (a problem with heights doesnt help) but i would gladly pay more for fire/police & ambulance, its easy to criticise what they get and how little you think they may do, but when you think most people i know in my chosen profession (IT) earn almost double the wage that the firefighters are asking for, i think it takes the mick to criticise.

Specially if they have wives, kids and houses in southern england to try and buy!

If you still have doubts watch any of the forthcoming sept 11th programs and ask yourself if you would/could be there, i know i couldnt.

hats off to em, pay em more.

[Edited by ptholt - 8/29/2002 9:04:49 PM]

Chip

Oh no, all those programmes about Sep 11. Better buy a good book then.

Please remember as well thats loads of other professions are dangerous but with low pay. These people dont demand 50% rises do they.

Firemen like other jobs know the crack and the pay before they join.

Chip.

PG

Chip,
picture going to work tomorrow and your boss was to say that there was no more OT to be worked for the rest of your career. He is also going to tell you that you are not allowed to do any homers and if you do you could be disciplined !
After telling you that you find that for the rest of your years your pay rise will be p!sh but..............he will tell you every so often that you do a grand job and everyone thinks you are great.

And lets not dishonor all those, be they FF or public who lost their lives in the 911 disaster

rallycol

iTrader: (4)

Chip you insensitive *******!

Chip

Whos dishounoring the 9/11 guys. Im not. Allthose involved whether FF or whatever must have had a terrible time which they will live with for the rest of their lives.

Col
As for insensitive. What about all the other disasters like floods,earthquakes, famine,malnutrition , volcanos etc that occur every year and kill millions. We dont go over and over this all the time do we. No. Its just a small column in a newspaper for a day or two.Then they move onto something else.

This would be the same if 9/11 happened in some third world country. It would be forgotten by now. But it didnt so well have to live over and over again for years to come.

Chip.

rallycol

iTrader: (4)

Your previous comment made reference specifically to Sept 11th,and not any other disasters.I notice your back peddaling in the last post ,this is appreciated,but Chip get it off your shoulder!

Chip

Not backpedalling at all .Made ref to 9/11 cos that was in previous post. Still wont bother watching all the 9/11 progs as weve seen it all before. Id sooner watch something cheery than gloomy.

Chip.

PG

Keeping this on topic

posted this before and got a few unhappy campers but I will try again

For the record. I do see where you are coming from Chip (when talking about the disaster thing...not the pay )

PG

Col,
even I knew Chip would come back with an 'I am not backpedaling' post

wrxjoy

Not read every reply to this thread but it does occur to me that firemen only work part time for their wage! and many have second jobs, not because they have to, but because they are bored! Still those of in the forces will step in and do there job for them while they go on strike (doing their second jobs no count)

rallycol

iTrader: (4)

Getting back to your original post ,do you think £1100 a month take home ,is good pay?

PG

Joy
Read every reply then !
Then you can have an informed dicussion

Bored...no
Skint...almost ( and that is without kids !!)

no FF works part time not even the retained !!

Chip

Thats good PG. Cant believe bit about FF sleeping on the floor though. Are they saying anyone who earns under 21K cant afford to live.

I cant see why this has come about all of a sudden. Surely the unions should have been going for more years ago. Why now. Whats really changed. If nothing magor has changed then why all the fuss now and not in previous years.

At the end of the day it makes no difference to me whether you earn 20 or 50K. Just seems strange that theyre worth this all of a sudden and not before.

I would love a rise to 30 and think my job is worth it but I know its just not realistic to ask for this kind of money. Thats life Im afraid.

Saying that MPs can award themselves massive rises, pensions, allowances can they.

Noticed you pay a big whack into your pension. This would lower your take home pay considerably. Would also lower your tax.
Then you can retire at 45 I believe. Swings and roundabouts.



Chip.

[Edited by Chip - 8/29/2002 11:01:56 PM]

wrxjoy

so pg how many hours do you work a month (tell the truth now) And yes I do have friends who are firemen, and yes they do have second jobs to fill all that time off they have. And yes I really am looking forward to driving a green goddess doing your job (fancy going to Iraq doing my job!)

Chip

Joy,
When you off over there then. wont ne long I dont suppose.

Chip.

rallycol

iTrader: (4)

I put fires out everyday in work ,do you fight wars everyday? Oh and BTW a large majority of existing firefighters have been in the armed forces,in the Gulf and Falklands.I've seen squaddies in action driving green goddess's ,no comment!

rallycol

iTrader: (4)

£1100 and still no comment

PG

Chip,
To a certain extent the Govt has brought it upon themselves due to the audit commision coming out and saying that despite the 85% increase in workload the level of service has stayed high. The Govt are also shooting for the moderisation of the bigade but want to keep a 25 year old pay structure AFAIK the FF sleeping on station floors are in the London area. I am fortunate tha house prices up here are alot more affordable (helped all the more due to my home being ex council )
Joy,
I dont want this to turn to a slagging match ( it is just that you started by saying that you hadn't even read all replies ) as far as my hours 2x12 hrs days 2x14hrs nights (often work 6 or so hrs b4 start of nights) 4 days off, working 8hrs a day most of them....but I have to pass the time somehow and I dont have too much to play with at the end of the day ( I dont lead an extravagent lifestyle either.)
To be honest it does look like the Greens will be hitting the streets
Please note that I, like Chip am not backpedaling

Lets all be happy,
Paul

sasman

My father was retained during the last strike Rallycol,
You may think soldiers driving godesses is dangerous, but
i have plenty of horror stories about full timers, far from protecting lives.

rallycol

iTrader: (4)

Nearly wiped out a police car last week ,both of us under lights and horns ,but he did go through red at about 50,gave him a bit of a shock!In a straight fight I think it would have been Scania 1 Omega 0

Chip

Just turned on TV to see prog about GBs sexiest firemam. Showed a clip of them playing Snooker.

Any of you lot on there then or were you too busy painting hydrants yellow.

Chip.

speedking

FF wouldn't be able to get to work without someone to build the roads and bridges that they use, and to build the buildings that catch fire

More money for Civil Engineers.

(Ditto people that put together fire engines, etc, etc.)

Tiggs

avarge wage- i work in a team of 10..we avarage £120k take 100 guys on 10k and you have avarge wage of £20k....simple.

sep 11th- chip, its on TV cause its the USA and therefore a global disaster whereas an eartquake in the third world is a local problem to the third world (in the eyes of the media)

fireman- when you decided to be a FF you knew the score... i was a gym instructor 5 years ago on 11k pa, i wanted more pay so i quit to do something else.

T

Sheepsplitter

Tiggs, what do you do now then?

Tiggs

financial adviser, why? you want an endowment

Sheepsplitter

LOL: Just curious, had to be sales of some sort or a trader.
I didn't realise there was still good money to be made in financial advice after the pensions & endowment scandals.

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Only seen this as part of a reply, but isn't it true that firefighters, like our wonderful police, pay a very large part of their salary into a pension fund, so THEY CAN RETIRE AT A VERY EARLY AGE?
How many others would love this sort of thing?
I'm also a bit surprised, but ready to be corrected, to find that a "fully qualified FF gets £21500 pa", AND THAT'S IT?
Wot, no increments? No pay range? No experience pay?
Someone put me right here.
IF it's true, and I repeat IF, then they are worth more than that.
£30000?? Well, I dunno...can we afford it, and that's wot it comes down to, isn't it?
PS-- I'd like to LOWER the pay of the ratbag crews who come past my house at 5am on a sunday morning, not another car on the road, and ALWAYS put on the blues and twos!! Grrrrrr.

The Zohan

IMHO

Like a lot of things i do not think you appreciate something until you need it, if your house was a blazing inferno with your family trapped inside (God forbid!) i recon you would happily hand over 30K per firefighter yourself!

Firemen, nurses, ambulance drivers, paramedics, police, etc have always been underpaid, that does not make it right.

These people provide essential services under extreme conditions and should be paid accordingly. It is sad that Firefighters cannot buy houses in the areas they work and end up travelling large distances to work or change profession to a job that pays proper money.

How would you feel if you made a 999 call to find out the the fire station was shut down due to no firefighters avaliable in the area any more, someone will be over from another county in the next 2 hours or so.

Whist they should not hold the general public to ranson they deserve to be paid a fair wage for what they do.

I believe if you look at local government pay structures that their pay is not exactly at the top end of the scale.

rallycol

iTrader: (4)

After 15 years service your pay goes up to £21500 ,and thats it.You don't get a choice on your pension contributions,and until recently the life expectency of a firefighter after retirement was a lot shorter than the national average .£1100 a month pick up,is this good money?

Tiggs

sheepsplitter,

endowment sales are down but the rest is still good...plenty of money out there and an easy job to get into, i joined with no experience and no qualifications apart from GCSE's

T