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Women In Uniform Queensland females take up the firefighting challenge By Gemma Marks Time may have changed the turnout gear, but for more than 100 years female firefighters have been an integral part of the fire service. Gone are the corsets and the long woollen dresses of the early 1900s, but the determination and dedication shown by today’s female firefighters remain the same. The Queensland Fire and Rescue Service’s female firefighters gathered last month for the QFRS Female Firefighter Conference at Indooroopilly in Brisbane to discuss recruitment, career progression and other issues. “The advice and feedback we have been getting on our recruitment process has been invaluable in increasing the number of women in the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service and I am very pleased to take that guidance,” Commissioner Lee Johnson said. There is no doubt that there are significant differences between men and women, and the QFRS, like most employers, is looking for this diversity and to increase the skill sets of its employees. The number of women joining the QFRS is slowly increasing, but it is imperative that this is done without changing the standards, or the requirements to meet those standards, according to QFRS policy. It will also take some time to gradually change attitudes toward women in the fire service. Acting Staff Officer Sue Smith, one of the speakers and coordinators of the conference, said women were well aware of their own uniqueness within the fire service. “They are doing a fantastic job participating as part of the team structure that is required to run an effective and efficient fire service,” she said. “The women in QFRS are mortified at the thought that anyone would be appointed without meeting the same standards as their male counterparts. It’s all about getting the job done and remembering that firefighters work in teams and one of the main sets of skills they need to do this job effectively is people skills.” Reflecting on the roles of women in the fire service reminds us just how long female firefighters have been at the forefront of protecting our communities. A group of women involved in the first ladies fire brigade in Armidale, New South Wales, were the Armidale Amazons of 1901. They trained in the same way as male firefighters, competed against men in firefighting field competitions (and won) and carried out duties in the early 1900s. These women had quite a different dress code compared to today’s female firefighters, wearing long woollen dresses, and as was the code of the time, they also wore corsets. This was the first record of female firefighters in Australia, and from the 1940s women were called in during war times to carry out firefighting duties. >> www.emergency.qld.gov.au EMERGENCY October 2006 1
“It is wonderful to have evidence of female participation in firefighting, as there seems to be a vacuum in the recorded history of female firefighters in Queensland before the appointment of the first female firefighter in the QFRS in 1996,” Sue said. Currently, QFRS employs 20 permanent female firefighters, two of whom are now fully qualified station officers. These women, Michelle Young and Vicki Shailer, are pioneers in their field, who have proven themselves and are leading the way for other women to move into more senior roles. There are also approximately 9000 female volunteers and 180 female auxiliary firefighters. With the ongoing advancement and recruitment of female firefighters, women will continue to be a significant part of QFRS history in the making. The Armidale Amazons…Circa 1901. 20 EMERGENCY October 2006 www.emergency.qld.gov.au
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