NEAFC 31st Annual Conference.pdf - New England Association of ...

NEW ENGLAND ASSOCIATION OF FIRE CHIEFS
amount they work varies with their financial position and what they are being paid,
and the amount of work available. I thin,k that probably economic conditions of the
country will straighten out the work problem before we get around to straighten it
out ourselves.
CHAIRMAN WOOLLEY: That is an interesting observation. Thank you, Chief.
Things may better, or worse before they are better, but I believe sooner or later
we are all going to be faced with the manpower problem. I would like to call on many
more but we have only time for one or two chiefs who. have volunteered to say something.
I would like to hear from Chief incidentally they tell me he is so well fixed
his salary is gift-wrapped. :Chief Potter, what is the situation in the town of Greenwich.
CHIEF STUART M. POTTER, Greenwich, Connecticut: Some of our men work on
off-time; others, do not. I think it is a matter that will largely have to be determined
by the la’bo.r conditions in, the community and nationally..Certainly firemen would
be frowned upon if they went into a fire station and slept at night and then went
out and played golf the next day when National Defense needed labor very badly.
On the other hand, firemen would be frowned upon if they put in their required
hours in the fire department and did other work on the outside when there was an
unemployment condition in the community. I think it can’t be determined by any
hard and fast rules, but it should ,be determined by con, ditions, particularly the local
conditions in the community where the men work.
CHAIRMAN W’OOLLEY: There we have some well considered o’bservations. Are
there any members, of N. F. P. A. or the National Board who. would like to comment?-
Would George Swann like to give us his personal observations? The Rating Bureaus
are all concerned with this question, of manpower as it bears upon efficiency. George
Swarm, would you .care to speak on this?
MR. GrORO~ SWANS: I will just make this observation, gentlemen. It is not conceivable
that a man would work in any employment and hold a job in outside employment.
The only reason this question, comes up are the peculiarities in the fire department.
Very frequently firemen have no actual labor work to doand therefore they are. not
tired out, and can handle work outside.
’CHAIRMAN WOOLLEY: Now yOU can see the value of a Panel of this kind when
we are able to secure opinions from the horse’s mouth, so to speak. I know that Joe
Scanlon, is around biting his nails. It is a shame we lost the fifteen minutes to let the
men who have come here with other subjects have a chance to bring them up. One of
these is: "Are we making the fullest use of radio?"
Some departments have one-way and some have two-way radio---some only in the
Chief’s car. Does anyone want to discuss this? I would be very happy to entertain
it or any other question’s. (No answer. ) I will assume then that no one wishes to
present a question now and therefore we can turn over the balance of our time to the
others on the program who deserve it.
SUPT. GREENLAW, Fire Alarms, Beverly, Massachusetts: I wonder whether or not
this matter would come under fire d,epartment,--that is the matter of the tire alarm com,
munications.
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