Recruitment and Retention Task Force comes to Mountain Iron
September 11, 2006 — During the 2006 Minnesota Legislative Session, lawmakers approved the establishment of a task force which would look at issues related to the retention and recruitment of public safety volunteers (fire, ambulance, rescue squads). The task force is required to submit a report of its findings to the State Public Safety Commissioner and the Legislature by December 15. The report will look at ways to deal with the recruitment and retention problem.
The task force came to the area on September 11 and held several meetings at the Mountain Iron Community Center. "We're looking for ideas," said Chisholm Fire Chief Bob Brown, a task force member. "This was our first meeting and the turn-out during the day meetings with business representatives and government officials was pretty light. During the evening meeting with the volunteers, we had about 30 in attendance."
Those who attended the Mountain Iron evening meeting expressed concern about the lack of younger volunteers in the emergency services. Concerns were also voiced about employers who have on-call or volunteer firefighters and ambulance personnel. "I either have to lose wages or make up the time," said one firefighter. Some major employers, like the mining companies, can't let people leave for fire calls because they are operating with a minimum number of workers already. During the evening meeting, a number of incentives were presented, ranging from tax breaks for employers to a state health care program for volunteer and on-call emergency personnel.
The task force held similar meetings in Monticello, Albert Lea and Marshall with many of the same concerns being expressed. "We have to do something about the decline in volunteers and on-call people," said Brown. "This is a very serious issue which impacts nearly every community in Minnesota and for that matter all across the nation. We need to find some workable solutions because simply said, it is a matter of public safety."