A career federal wildland firefighter earns about $20/hour as a GS6, and employed for only 6 months per year. This leads to a guaranteed salary of only $20,000. Rents for a home in the west are closer to $24,000 per year. Daycare per child costs $10,000 per year. Does anyone see a problem here?

The current program of 9 phone calls to a random counselor doesn’t even pass the laugh test. Our firefighters often have serious PTSD from towns burning up and coworkers injured, but our mental health program is not designed for such mental trauma.

It’s fairly common for wildland firefighters to get injured on the job. What’s unacceptable is when claims are denied, income is lost and people are sent to collections.

The average federal salary is a GS12, yet for wildland firefighters it is rare that we make it to GS9. Lack of career ladders and life-uprooting moves for minimal pay raises have made the job difficult to recruit or retain employees

The Transfer of Station (TOS) was discontinued by our Wahsington DC US Forest Service leadership, meaning that any assistance to move stations no longer exists. Selling a median priced home and moving can cost upwards of $60,000 so it’s pretty clear why moving up is not very practical, especially for those with partners and families.

When our base pay doesn’t cover even the most basic bills, we are forced to work non-stop, 800-1200 hours of OT in only a few months. This causes mental stress, and those with families are forced to either be either a deadbeat or absent parent.