By Rich Marinucci
Two of the most critical elements involved in providing quality service are the political and labor relations enjoyed by an organization. First, you will note that I said quality service. Sometimes I have the opinion that we have accepted average or less because of a variety of reasons. Obviously political support is needed to advance any department. Places that do not have good support—and this means more than a policy board just paying lip service—will not get the resources they need to be at the top of their game. Remember that someone else controls the funding provided to a department. Good funding pays for good service; great funding pays for great service.
I recently attended a seminar presented by my good friend Garry Briese. The title was, “Our Fire Department’s New Motto: Good Enough is Good Enough!” The basic premise is that fire departments have take on so many extra duties from its core mission that there is not adequate time and resources to get great at our jobs. Think about it. Besides fire response, EMS, hazmat, tech rescue, fire prevention, fire investigation, and public safety education, what else have you taken on when asked? Obviously, members of the fire service are very willing to help out and are loathe to say no. I don’t think people purposely or consciously take advantage of that, but when you get to a point where you cannot commit to excellence, something has to give. You become a jack of all trades and a master of none, with an emphasis on master of none.
On the political side of things, those organizations (and I mean in totality) that get the need to be actively engaged politically almost always do better than those that don’t. I am not necessarily advocating that we start putting signs in our yards and backing candidates. The real base of political power is relationships—with everyone from the highest elected official in the community to the citizenry. It will include the movers and shakers, business leaders, and even those involved with youth sports. Friends are more likely to support friends. Those on the outside get the leftovers.
Another bone of contention is that we don’t take advantage of some of the things at our disposal. There are plenty of studies that prove the benefit of adequate staffing, the effects of the job on cancer rates, the need to promote the health and wellness of our employees, and the simple fact that happy, contented employees do better. Yet, I hear so called leaders arguing against the merits of NFPA standards like 1710 and 1500. I never hear those same people take a position that they don’t agree with the apparatus or protective clothing standards. They say NFPA 1710 and NFPA 1500 cost too much. But, they don’t say that NFPA 1901 adds too much to the cost of apparatus. They say that their people are their most valuable resource but they only comply totally with the standards applicable to inanimate objects. Go figure.
Another aspect of working toward improved service is through good labor relations. While most would view this as between management and a formal labor organization, it should be viewed as taking care of employees within the reasonable confines of available resources. And, reasonable resources do not mean that the policy making body said to take it or leave it. The budgets should be established based upon need and desired levels of service. Any organization, regardless of the line of work, will only thrive if the people delivering the service are content. Once they are rewarded with the basics, they are looking for a voice in the operations, caring supervisors, and honest support. It doesn’t sound too complicated but there are not