“Valor is of no service, chance rules all, and the bravest often fall by the hands of cowards” -Tacitus
JP sat in his recliner, a colorful crocheted blanket draped over his atrophied legs. His face was illuminated by the yellow flame that shone from the television screen, the flickers accentuating the dark circles under his sunken eyes. A faint smile was barely visible on his gaunt face as he re-lived fighting California wildfires as a young man. The room was packed as family and friends flanked him, transfixed by “Only the Brave” that played on the television. He chuckled weakly as the Prescott firefighters berated each other as he had so many times in Station 54. The portrayal of the hotshots’ tragic death moved him visibly, empathising with the grieving families, heartbroken as they received the worst of news.
JP had been part of a youth rehabilitation program as a teen and had fallen in love with the fire service. He moved east to Florida and joined Orange County Fire Rescue Department, ultimately becoming a Special Operations Technician. He was known as the heart of the firehouse, the kind of vibrant personality that often had the whole station in stitches. There was no mirth now however. JP had been given a physiological death sentence and time had all but run out. An insidious autoimmune disease had ravaged his body, forcing him out of the fire service and ultimately into hospice.
The film “Only the Brave” had just been released in the movie theaters but JP was too frail to leave his home. Hearing his story, Sony flew a hard drive copy of the film from Los Angeles and one of their representatives drove it up from Fort Lauderdale for his own private viewing. As the film concluded, he was moved to tears and hugged the woman who had made his final wish a reality. JP died just three short weeks later.
Ten years ago, I participated in the 343 Hero Challenge and wrote JP’s name on my back along with five other firefighter brothers we’d lost. Last year, 110 first responder names adorned my back, names from areas I actually worked. This is just a fraction of the men and women that we lose nationally. Eight years ago, tired of burying my friends, I started a free podcast called Behind the Shield, to bring the true experts of the world to the first responders who needed their solutions. To date, there are over 1000 episodes from some of the greatest minds on the planet, a vast library, accessible to all.
Despite all of this information, I have seen a deliberate opposition to changing the very things that are killing our firefighters. We are a profession that harps on about our bravery yet the pervasive cancer I see is cowardice. Let me give you a very up close and personal example. Marion County Fire Rescue, the department that protects my family, had four firefighter suicides in as many years and a fifth attempt where thankfully he survived. Moved by these tragedies, the hospital district, not the department, funded a think tank with IHMC, a human performance research organisation that works with NASA, DARPA and NSW to name a few. Their conclusion was that the number one change was to transition to the 24/72, 42 hour work week. Despite the free research that was done for the department, they refused to make the change. They’ve since lost another former firefighter.
Here’s the link to the study: Click here
https://www.ihmc.us/BlueSky/20231107BlueSkyFirefighter.pdf
So why is there so much resistance to the irrefutable evidence that the work week and chronic understaffing is literally killing our firefighters? Well let’s break it down.
When I came on twenty years ago, I was competing against thousands of candidates for a handful of spots. The candidates had packed resumes and trained diligently for the physical and written tests. We did practice interviews, hoping to stand out against the sea of hopefuls. Today, we are drowning in a recruitment crisis, where departments are lowering standards and offering thousands in hiring bonuses to lure applicants. So what changed? Twenty years ago, when you Googled ‘What is it like to be a firefighter?’ it was all heroic rescues and sooty faces. Do the same online search today and you’ll also see cancer, suicide, divorce, 56 hour work weeks, mandatory overtime and more.
This young generation have all of this information at their fingertips and although Gen Zs are choosing trades more now than ever, they are not choosing ours. This is a generation that has been educated on physical and mental health. They value relationships and understand the importance of sleep. There is a point where the working conditions simply outweigh the desire to serve. To underline this point, our greatest recruiters used to be our own firefighters, who would reel in friends and often even their own children. This is not the case today and the woeful retention numbers further illustrate that point.
If the way we did it worked, my friends would still be alive and I would have no need for a podcast. But they did die, over a hundred of them. So my question is why are others not moved by a folded American flag being given to a heartbroken family? Why don’t the bagpipes and last calls spur others into action?
That’s where this pervasive cowardice comes in. If I had a nickel for every time I’d heard, “They’ll never go for that” or “Oh, but it’s complicated”, I’d be a wealthy man. That is the rhetoric of the spineless, the paper tiger that hides behind apathy rather than digging deep for moral courage. Now don’t get me wrong, this isn’t just at the chief level. This is on all rungs of the ladder. We have City and County council members who refuse to let their citizens know that the level of service is diminishing. There are no tax refunds for the drop in staffing on a rig or browned out fire stations. There are no rebates for the increased likelihood of being hit by a sleep deprived driver at an intersection. For a while, Marion County had pimped their rescues out to hospitals for inter-facilty transports. The rescue that was needed for an entrapment or cardiac arrest in my community was out of service earning money for a corporation. When will they finally let us know what is really going on behind closed doors? When no one is there to respond anymore?
Let’s go to the chiefs. When you look at the immense downstream costs of this broken system, there are millions wasted annually. Do a forensic analysis of your own department. How much do you spend on overtime? In 2022, Marion County had 173,000 hours of overtime. Let’s low ball it at $30 an hour. That’s over 5 million dollars. Now let’s look at retention. How many firefighters leave your department before retirement? It costs Marion $18,000 per recruit and they’re bleeding people. Let's say they lose 100 firefighters, that's another 2 million. These two false economies alone would fund another entire shift. That’s not including workman’s comp costs, medical retirement payouts, line of duty death benefits and the millions in lawsuits from sleep deprived mistakes. So how can we afford it? Here's your answer.
“What about staffing? We can’t even hire people now!” the cowards decry. Less than ten years ago, we had people lining up to join our profession. Over 30% of certified firefighters aren’t working so there is a huge untapped pool. As Gainesville has seen, when you show the community that you value their health, they’ll start lining up once more. Every department I know that has begun the move to the 24/72 has seen a huge spike in recruitment and retention. Lowering the bar or offering empty financial incentives just doesn’t work. Set the bar high and forge an environment that nurtures performance and longevity, that is how we attract the very best once more.
Firefighters, don’t think you’re excluded from this. You love your selfies in front of burned out houses but won’t advocate for your family? You let a department continuously keep you from your partner and children. Time and time again, you have to make that heartbreaking call, breaking the promise to be at a dance recital or game. Ask yourself this. People who work 40 hours a week tell you that you don’t deserve to work less than 56. The same people who caused this recruitment crisis in the first place. Why doesn’t your family deserve to have you home as much as the barista or grocery clerk? You say it’s ‘for them’ but your actions don’t match your words. Elite performance requires ample rest and recovery and you’re settling for sub-par by not fighting for it.
We have a much higher incidence of pediatric diseases and reproductive abnormalities in our profession. Our testosterone is destroyed, infertility is rampant and our children have a much higher likelihood of developing cancer. Shift work is a known carcinogen. Are your children not worth fighting for?
Unions, this one’s for you. The History of Trade Unionism (1894) by Sidney and Beatrice Webb, states that the predominant historical view is that a trade union "is a continuous association of wage earners for the purpose of maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment". The conditions of their employment. So why hasn’t the work week been at the forefront of the conversation for decades? Much of the north east works 42 hours. We idolise their hose lays and yet completely disregard their shifts schedules. Our cops usually earn the same salary for a 40 hour week but no one seems to ask why.
Throughout my career I’ve seen unions oppose fitness standards in a profession that demands a high level of strength and conditioning. There is no greater coward than he who opposes a bar that forges both performance and longevity, a standard set in the academy and literally labeled ‘MINIMUM standards’. I have so much admiration for unions that truly advocate for their people. Pascoe County is a prime example of having the moral courage to simply do the right thing. Those unions are worth the dues.
So to reiterate, I have collated a library of resources for you to begin your own journey of change. I have interviews with departments that successfully switched to the 24/72 (and no they didn’t take a pay cut). I have military sleep medicine experts, neuroscientists, psychologists, coaches, the list goes on and on. This information is completely free. All that is needed is the courage to act. If you simply don’t have the stones for the position you inhabit, step aside and let someone with a backbone prevent the next potential funeral.
James
The 24/72 and Shiftwork Resource: Click Here