Fire Department Combination Fill-In Policy

Fill-in policies are in place to ensure a minimum number of employees for emergencies.

Fire department combination fill-in policies are procedures set in place during the absences of a fire engineer, captain, deputy chief or paramedic. Anyone from the team can normally fill in for a position, if they have the correct years of experience and training to work in the position. Requirements will vary slightly for each fire department.

General Priorities

A minimum number of people must work on any given shift to maximize operational performance and personnel safety. Fire departments may require a certain number of personnel types, such as paramedics, on each shift and may limit the number of fill-in positions in each rank at any time. Policies may require that administrative staff be aware of fill-in positions, whether short term or long term, and changes to rotations.

Paramedic and Engineer Fill-In

Staff wishing to fill in for paramedic and engineer positions may be required to have certain education and experience, and perhaps a completed probationary period in their chosen role.

Fire Captain and Deputy Chief Fill-In

Employees wishing to fill in for the role of fire captain may be required to have experience as a firefighter, fire engineer, fire paramedic or a combination of the three roles and get approval from the district chief (battalion chief) and deputy chief (division chief). Personnel wishing to fill in for the deputy chief role (division chief) may be required to have experience as a fire captain.

References

• Tempe: Tempe Fire Department Policies and Procedures - Fill-In Procedure
• Tempe: Tempe Fire Department Policies and Procedures - Constant Staffing
• City of Fitchburg Fire Department: Fill-In Program Shift Scheduling
• Bureu of Labor Statistics: Fire Fighters

Resources

• Tempe: Policies and Procedures - Volume 4; Training.