Would the type of furniture in your day room encourage recruitment and retention?

[Firefighter6034]

Would the type of furniture in your day room encourage recruitment and retention? Would you want to volunteer more if you have $700 chairs to sit or would you volunteer the same without them?

[Dirty Axe]

Would the type of furniture in your day room encourage recruitment and retention? Would you want to volunteer more if you have $700 chairs to sit or would you volunteer the same without them?

I'd volunteer all the same without them. Then again, if you had a big, plush couch that reclined out and had cup holders at each seat, with a mini-fridge in the middle that kept a nice supply of beer co.... oh, sorry, thinking of my dream living room at home instead. Nevermind

[BoxAlarm187]

We're getting ready to buy some of those $700 recliners for our station under construction. It's not being used as a recruitment and retention tool, rather as a way of thanks for the guys who work hard to keep our station and company in good shape.

I don't think we'd lose any members if we didn't get them, but at the same time, I don't think we'll have applications flying in becuase of the squishy chairs in the day room.

[yjbrody]

Probably not. I would like to get rid of the loveseats in one of our stations however.

I wish I was kidding.

[ChiefKN]

I nominate this for dumbest opinion of the month post.

No offense to the OP, but if anyone really believes that the type of furniture would do it... well... bizarre.

[LaFireEducator]

I guess I'll disagree with most of the posters and say that yes, nice furniture in the day room may encourage volunteers to spend time at the station.

And it could be a determining factor in the mind of a prospective volunteer as well as it shows him that the department places value in their volunteers, and takes the time to reward them with a nice place to hang out.

The simple fact is that the more comfortable we make the station, the more likely it is that folks will spend time there. This also includes nice TVs, playstations, workout areas and nice kitchen with pots and pans that encourage them to cook a meal rather than run and eat at the local McNastys.

One of the key, and few, advantages that a career department gives it citizens is a rapid response from the station. If a volunteer department has the funds available once they provide reasonable training, PPE, communications and apparatus to make the station a nice place to spend time, it's certainly a reasonable and justifiable expenditure as it will shorten response times.

Yes, it will have an affect on morale and likely the time that volunteers will spend there.

[GTRider245]

A better question would be would you really want someone who was motivated by dayroom furniture volunteering with you?

[tajm611]

i've always been motivated by departments with good tools, you know, things I get paid to work with. I sit on a plastic lawn chair at my department when I'm reading or studying and our beds are hand me downs from the prison. We don't care about it because we worry more about the things we use while working and not sitting on our *** all day.

[ChiefKN]

Yes, it will have an affect on morale and likely the time that volunteers will spend there.

A $700 dollar recliner as opposed to a $200 recliner will make a difference for your morale?

I don't know, we spent something stupid like $80k on our "day room" and the morale was not better, in fact, it got worse in some ways.

BS

[jtucker1384]

I guess I'll disagree with most of the posters and say that yes, nice furniture in the day room may encourage volunteers to spend time at the station.

And it could be a determining factor in the mind of a prospective volunteer as well as it shows him that the department places value in their volunteers, and takes the time to reward them with a nice place to hang out.

The simple fact is that the more comfortable we make the station, the more likely it is that folks will spend time there. This also includes nice TVs, playstations, workout areas and nice kitchen with pots and pans that encourage them to cook a meal rather than run and eat at the local McNastys.

One of the key, and few, advantages that a career department gives it citizens is a rapid response from the station. If a volunteer department has the funds available once they provide reasonable training, PPE, communications and apparatus to make the station a nice place to spend time, it's certainly a reasonable and justifiable expenditure as it will shorten response times.

Yes, it will have an affect on morale and likely the time that volunteers will spend there.

I don't agree with you at pretty much anything u post on here I think you views are a little insane at points. However I have to agree with you on this one. I volunteered on a dept that didnt have much of anything one bunk older than I care to think about no even able to sleep on nor would I want to. Our couch was hand me down prob from the 60's and in general the station was run down and never taken care of. Now I am paid at a different combo dept that has nice chairs and is cleaned up and taken care of. We have a decent kitchen with all the essentials to cook anything we like. There is a huge difference as to the amount of people that actually come out and hangout on our shift. At the other department if it wasn't a call or training night you would see one person there.

[BoxAlarm187]

We don't care about it because we worry more about the things we use while working and not sitting on our *** all day.

Our guys don't sit on their *** all day either, we just want them to have comfortable place to do it once at the training, chores, and calls are done with.

[ChiefKN]

Our guys don't sit on their *** all day either, we just want them to have comfortable place to do it once at the training, chores, and calls are done with.

The OP didn't say anything about comfort... he asked about $700 recliners.

Yes, if you are sitting on egg crates and sharing space with the horses then it will affect morale.

But if the furniture is comfortable not covered in stains and there is a TV, most guys are cool with it.

[tajm611]

Idk, maybe I'm weird but I've never fought a fire with a recliner or any furniture for that matter. Nor have I had time to dwell on the comfort of a mattress. Your job is firefighter, not sleeper. If it's not your job, lounge at your house.

[BoxAlarm187]

Idk, maybe I'm weird but I've never fought a fire with a recliner or any furniture for that matter. Nor have I had time to dwell on the comfort of a mattress. Your job is firefighter, not sleeper. If it's not your job, lounge at your house.

C'mon now, I think you're taking things out of context. I'm well aware of what my job is, as are the personnel I volunteer and work with. I know you're not so naive to think that we're going to spend the ENTIRE day and night training, running calls, doing inspections, reading trade journals, watching that leftover 1987 American HEAT on VHS, eating, running more calls, cleaning, running more calls, etc. There IS going to be down time, and we might as well provide some level of comfort to the personnel during those times.

I've never faught a fire with a recliner either, though my curiosity is piqued now.

[jtucker1384]

C'mon now, I think you're taking things out of context. I'm well aware of what my job is, as are the personnel I volunteer and work with. I know you're not so naive to think that we're going to spend the ENTIRE day and night training, running calls, doing inspections, reading trade journals, watching that leftover 1987 American HEAT on VHS, eating, running more calls, cleaning, running more calls, etc. There IS going to be down time, and we might as well provide some level of comfort to the personnel during those times.

I've never faught a fire with a recliner either, though my curiosity is piqued now.

Well said I was getting ready to post a similar message.

[tajm611]

C'mon now, I think you're taking things out of context. I'm well aware of what my job is, as are the personnel I volunteer and work with. I know you're not so naive to think that we're going to spend the ENTIRE day and night training, running calls, doing inspections, reading trade journals, watching that leftover 1987 American HEAT on VHS, eating, running more calls, cleaning, running more calls, etc. There IS going to be down time, and we might as well provide some level of comfort to the personnel during those times.

I've never faught a fire with a recliner either, though my curiosity is piqued now.

No sir, my statement was never directed at you, I assure you. Our stations are well, well worn-in. Our oldest, dingiest station is everyone's favorite. Every step of the stairs creaks, every sitting surface is blown out, and we mostly sleep on the sofas and chairs in the bay. As long as the toilet, shower, fridge, stove, and microwave work I'm fine. I apologize if you thought it was directed at you, my mistake. Stay safe and have fun, sir.

[LaFireEducator]

No sir, my statement was never directed at you, I assure you. Our stations are well, well worn-in. Our oldest, dingiest station is everyone's favorite. Every step of the stairs creaks, every sitting surface is blown out, and we mostly sleep on the sofas and chairs in the bay. As long as the toilet, shower, fridge, stove, and microwave work I'm fine. I apologize if you thought it was directed at you, my mistake. Stay safe and have fun, sir.

The trick is the OP was talking about a volunteer station, where you are competing with the comforts of home to keep them at the station and reduce response times.

I never stated that they need a $700 recliner, but nice recliners that they can spend time in will certainly intice them to spend some time at the station.

If the station is cold, drafty and not a comfortable place to be, they will be at home (unless of course the wife makes it an even colder place than the station).

[pasobuff]

Having cushy furniture wouldn't get me to join a department - but it would be a nice perk....and as other said, would get volunteers to spend more time at the station. I know when I was in my first dept, we had a pool table in one of the rooms, so a bunch of us would hang out and play pool and watch TV...the chairs were nothing to write home about though.....another dept. I was associated with had similar stuff, old furniture, and CABLE....haha...that was a draw to hang out at the time.....

My vol. dept here has folding chairs, folding tables - but fairly recently a nice TV, WII system and DVD player.....if I was active there (and single) I'd be more inclined to spend time there hanging out rather than at home.....I wouldn't need a $700- chair though....

I do have to as the OP - are those the FireHouse Furniture chairs by any chance? What a gimmick!

[auxman]

I can't see justifying brand new recliners that cost that much even if the department had the money to buy them. Something nice but not outrageous is the way to go. It doesn't have to be the cheapest piece of junk out there, but shouldn't be so much on the high end.

Also, can't believe that the public would find that amount of money to be a wise use of resources.

[Bones42]

Would the type of furniture in your day room encourage recruitment and retention? Would you want to volunteer more if you have $700 chairs to sit or would you volunteer the same without them?

Type of furniture? Well, if it's normal everyday chairs/couches compared to queen size beds...I guess that would make a difference. If we're talking chairs at a 8' long "bingo" table vs barstools lined up at the bar...it might make a difference. If we are talking wicker furniture vs leather....maybe.

Does it have any effect on wanting to volunteer more/less? The first time a guy tells me firehouse furniture has ANYTHING to do with the time he spends there...he leaves the building for the last time.

You can't be f'ing serious.