Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency Handbook
P-055 Volunteer Participation Requirements and Honorarium Program
Issued By: Brian Gray, Deputy Chief Operations
Approved By: Deputy Chief Roy Hollett
Date of Issue: Oct 23, 2017
PURPOSE:
To define the minimum participation requirements for a volunteer firefighter and to establish the criteria for the administration of the honorarium program.
OBJECTIVE:
To promote an active volunteer component and appropriately recognize this service through the honorarium program.
SCOPE:
All HRFE volunteer members.
DEFINITIONS:
• Meetings: Includes all regularly scheduled meetings the member is expected to attend or those approved by their Division Captain or Division Commander. These may be monthly, but in the case of officers, may include additional management meetings.
• Training sessions: All regularly scheduled or prescribed departmental training sessions, including courses required to complete Volunteer Recruit Training (VRT), Driving, Blue Card and MFR training. Special training events may also be included. Special training events must be approved by the Division Captain or Division Commander.
• Emergency responses: This includes all fire and emergency responses by the department.
• Active Member: For the purposes of this policy, an Active Member is a volunteer firefighter with a Duty Status in FDM showing “Active in a Regular Role” and a Rank showing as Firefighter, Probationary Firefighter, Lieutenant, Station Chief or Division Captain. This is a Level 1 trained firefighter fully qualified in operational duties and face piece fit tested annually.
• Support Member: Members who do not fit the parameters for Active Member may apply to be retained as Support Members where positions are available within the authorized complement. The role of Support Members is detailed in Policy P-045. Participation requirements for Operational Support Members are the same as those stated for Active Members. Administrative support members are expected to commit two (2) hours per week to station activities.
POLICY:
Eligibility for Honorarium:
• Volunteer members who meet or exceed the participation levels identified below are eligible to receive the honorarium payment.
Participation Standards:
• Minimum participation rates are as follows:
o Attendance at Incidents – Minimum 25%
o Attendance at Training/Meetings – Minimum 33%
• Participation rates will be calculated so as not to include regular workday hours of 0600 to 1800 Monday through Friday. It is understood that most volunteer firefighters have jobs that prevent them from responding during the regular work day and they should not be penalized for missing those calls. Volunteers are encouraged to respond to calls 0600 to 1800 Monday through Friday if they are available.
• Members are encouraged to attend all station meetings, training, and emergency responses for the station to which they are assigned.
• At the end of each quarter the Station Chief or designate shall meet with members who fall below minimum participation rates in either category described above to discuss their lack of participation and provide appropriate coaching.
• Members who fall below the minimum participation rates during consecutive quarters may be removed from active service and will no longer be entitled to volunteer benefits. This may include vehicle use, license reimbursement, pagers, protective clothing, other clothing, etc. Notes of these discussions shall be kept in the manner prescribed in the Progressive Discipline Process.
• The fair and consistent treatment of volunteer members is a high priority. The Station Chief, Division Captain, Division Commander, and Volunteer Sector Manager may discuss borderline cases as required.
• The Honorarium Assistant will provide quarterly reports regarding participation rates to the Division Captain or Division Commander.
Payment of Honorarium
• Credit for each activity shall be weighted (see Weighting of Credits table).
• Members are eligible to accumulate honorarium points as soon as they are accepted as a member, which is usually the day after they have successfully completed their Volunteer Physical Fitness test.
• Members with a partial year of service are entitled to an honorarium based on the credits earned during the time of service.
• Members who leave HRFE will receive the honorarium they earned during their time as a member, on the condition that all HRFE equipment, property, or clothing is returned and any outstanding funds owed to HRFE or HRM are returned.
• Officers will be considered Firefighters or Qualified Driver-Operators within the honorarium system as they are compensated for their Officer roles through the payment of the Officer Stipend.
Weighting of Credits
| 0.5 | Non-Level 1 Trained Firefighter, Support Members in Administration and In-Station Roles and Volunteer Recruits |
| 0.6 | Qualified Support Drivers |
| 1.0 | Officers & Level 1 FFs in stations with 24/7 career staff |
| 1.0 | Officers & Level 1 FFs in stations with E Platoon (when E Platoon on duty) |
| 1.1 | Qualified Driver-Operator (or 2 credits if applicable) |
| 2.0 | Officers & Level 1 FFs in stations with E Platoon (when E Platoon off duty) |
| 2.0 | Officers & Level 1 FFs in Stations with no career staff |
| Activities | Time Unit | Credit per Time Unit |
| Emergency Response | ½ Hour | 1 Credit |
| Training (does not include personal travel time) | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Fire Prevention | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Public Education | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Recruitment (to a maximum of two members) | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Meetings | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Non-Emergency Coverage | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Storm Coverage | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Support – Administrative | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Support – On Scene | 1/2 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Support – In Station | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Volunteer Firefighters Council Events | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
| Station Maintenance (for stations without career staff) | 1 Hour | 1 Credit |
GUIDELINES:
Emergency Response
• Emergency response refers to calls which are initiated by Dispatch. The time frame shall be from the initial dispatch until the release of personnel. This includes emergency coverage of other stations during an emergency incident.
• For emergency responses that are cancelled before an apparatus responds, members who respond to the station will receive a ½ hour credit. Their attendance must be verified by the Officer who completes the report.
• Members will only receive credits for the portion of the call they have attended.
• Members who have not yet graduated from the Volunteer Training Program (VRT) cannot respond to calls.
Training
Members must actively participate in training to receive an honorarium credit. Lesson plans and rosters of attendance must be filed with the Training Division to have credits awarded for the session.
Eligible training shall include:
• In-house
• Nova Scotia Firefighters School (NSFS) when attending as a station. (Members are not credited for attending courses as an individual.)
• Medical First Responder (MFR)
• Blue Card
• Continuing Education Modules
• Blue Card (80 hours)
• Continuing Education Modules (as per module)
• MFR full program (40 hours) or MFR Recertification (8 hours)
• VRT (122 hours including MFR, 84 hours for recruits exempt from MFR)
Credits will be awarded upon successful completion of the program at the rate of one credit per hour and will be entered at the station level.
Meetings
Approved meetings for credit include:
• Operational monthly meetings
• All station officer meetings (non-credited event)
• Special committee meetings as approved by the Volunteer Sector Manager
• Division training meetings (non-credited event for Officers)
Fire Prevention and Public Education
To be eligible for points, these events must be approved by the Division Captain or Division Commander.
Storm Coverage
• Only events covered by an official Environment Canada storm warning and approved by the Deputy Chief of Operations are eligible.
• Storm crew staffing shall be four personnel per engine and two personnel per tanker. There must be an officer and a driver on the engine and a driver on the tanker. If the crew is dispatched to an incident, this activity becomes an Emergency Response for its duration. The time spent on emergency calls shall not be compensated as storm coverage time.
Non-Credited Events
Any event determined to be a non-credited event must be approved by the Division Captain or Division Commander.
Implementation:
• Honorarium Year - The honorarium year is October 1 to September 30.
• Timelines and Deadlines – Deadlines for honorarium entry in FDM shall be set quarterly. These dates will be circulated and posted each year, with the final entry deadline mid to late October and a goal for payout before December 25.
• Submissions - All information shall be entered in the “FDM module”.
• Final Review – It is the responsibility of the Station Chief to review the Honorarium stats on a regular basis. The stats will be reviewed by the Division Captain on a quarterly basis. Final submission of the Honorarium points will be reviewed by the Volunteer Sector Manager and the Executive Officer.
RELATED POLICIES/ OPERATING GUIDELINES:
• P-014 Employee Status Change Form
• P-042 Leave of Absence-Volunteers
• P-043 Total Authorized Complement Stations 19-63
• P-045 Volunteer Firefighter Support Positions
POLICY REVIEW:
This policy shall be reviewed when/if there are changes to the criteria for the administration of the volunteer honorarium program.