Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities

Fire department seeking recruits

Clovis Fire Chief Mike Nolen has a problem. He wants to fill vacancies for positions for firefighters in his department and the response has been slow.

"The fire department is in a big hiring situation now," Nolen said. "In a department of 91, I am short 11 people."

In his office Thursday, Nolen said he lost four people as they became recent retirees.

"We (firefighters) suffer as much as anyone else in the United States when it comes to personnel shortages," Nolen said.

Nolen couldn't say what the exact problem is when it comes to hiring but he speculated it could be "it's just a different generation."

Nolen and his department are putting the word out they need people.

He believes one problem in getting recruits is the department is required to list just basic pay as $12.71 per hour which, when multiplied by 40 to represent a 40-hour week, comes out to $26, 436 a year.

Nolen said people who are interested in the job need to read the full description of the pay and benefits with the department, a package that works out to about $36,000 to $37,000 annually.

Nolen said the pay structure for a Clovis firefighter has weekly overtime pay built into the hours, for EMT and Firefighter 1 and 2 classes at Clovis Community College tuition is paid by the department, there is tuition reimbursement for the employee's degree plan and regular pay raises.

"There's the added benefit of mentorship from your fellow firefighters," Nolen said. "We build our firefighters here."

Nolen said Clovis firefighters go through the same certifications as firefighters in New York City, Los Angeles and other major cities.

"Sadly, they often take this training and move away," Nolen said.

Lt. Gerald Kilmer, who participated in the interview with Nolen, compared being in the department to being in a family.

"The biggest thing we're looking for," Nolen said, "we have a community of young people. We urge parents to send your kids to us."

Nolen pointed out the young men and women will be put on a career path, they'll be surrounded by "good influences and we'll pay for their college."

"This is the best full-time job in the world as well as the best part-time job," Kilmer said. "People who don't think you can support a family on this job, they haven't looked at all the benefits."

Kilmer described the work schedule, one in which the firefighter works two days on and four days off.

"You have something else to do or take care of on those four days you got that," Kilmer said.

Nolen said the job basically requires just one commuting trip a week so it's easy on vehicle fuel expenses.

"We have people in the department who live in Lubbock and Amarillo and commute to Clovis," Nolen said.

More information is available at the department's website: fire.cityofclovis.org .

"There are so many incentives it's hard to list them all," Nolen said.

"Working for the department," Kilmer said, "I don't feel like I've worked a day. There are things you wanted to do as a kid, you're doing them here."

 
 
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