Notice its empty ?

BlazingPalace · Notice its empty ?

Funny how this one is empty, mind you shows the civilian staff ( sorry non uniformed ) do not get the whole thing about "our" job and what it means to us and why we care so much about it

Strings

Yeah I was just thinking the same thing!

As you say...just goes to show! :wink:

Frances Firefly

I was considering amalgamating some of the specialist forums in some way. Don't suppose it looks good to people visit to see the empty bits.

Strings

Good idea, it'll look less "empty that way I think.

I've got a link for the Links section too if you're happy to have it?

Frances Firefly

Yep, no problem. Chuck it in there

Well send me a pm, and I shall

Strings

I can't, it's locked.

Frances Firefly

Yep, just realised and edited my post to say pm it to me. Sorry :wink:

Strings

PM Sent :wink:

Frances Firefly

and sorted...

Strings

I was just thinking.....Why should the civilian staff get a section on here? There don't even call us Firefighters anymore! And they don't deserve any recognition at all, in my opinion anyway.

Blaze Bear

Maybe they would ask for the same amount of respect as we do?............ :shock: just a thought!!

BlazingPalace

Maybe they would, but if they do not come and talk to us how do we know what they think

Blaze Bear

See I'm in the postition to have them working on the same floor as our team, they are on the whole very nice and chatty. I as you never got to see or hear them when I was on station until I had a problem and had to phone and winge at them. Can't be nice for them.

BlazingPalace

It does also go the other way, last week my crew managers was sick whilst detached on a training course, this means you are unable to edit any of the Stars with someone detached, it comes up with a warning telling you that only a Station Manager or above can change it.
Anyway long story short this person from training rings up to ask why I have not updated stars to show this person sick, I explain the above, with that I get a load of abuse about how "you" lot at stations dont do anything right, with that the bells go down and I try to interupt her in mid flow, explaining I need to go we have a fire call, with which see continues to go on and on telling me its not a real call its one of the blokes pressing the button to make out its a shout.
She must have missed her chocolate break thats all I can think!

Blaze Bear

Oh what fun :lol:

Cyclops246

She sounds like a bag of laughs, Ian!! Either that or she's married to a fireman as she knows the old trick of dropping the bells to get rid of, ahem, undesirable callers! What department did she work in? I might invite her to our Christmas bash!

Strings

You should've just put the phone down on the necky *****!

smudger22

Just a quicky, anyone know any non operational personnel that could put their point of view across?
Just wondered if there was a reason why the Brigade runs the way it does and the civvys implement thigs that they do, I mean, you must have a goal (musn't you?), there must be some greater good coming from the way the Brigade cocks up oops sorry, runs things?
Isn't there?
please?
Anybody?
Just a thought, there must be someone out there who knows a civvy (

)

Cyclops246

I agree with some of the sentiment contained within the messages above but as it seems unlikely a non-uniformed individual will reply, I will take up the mantle for our colleagues in the offices.

I worked for a while in Special Operations Group, which was a mix of uniformed personnel (mainly ADO rank and above) and non-uniformed personnel. From my limited experience of working with the individuals in that department, I can say that they were all professional, hardworking people who knew what was expected of them and delivered. It irked me somewhat to arrive as a newly promoted Station Officer to be spoken down to by a 23 year old graduate who had the equivalent rank of Divisional Officer; after all, how many fires had she put out? How many unfortunate victims of drunk drivers had she extricated? How many times had she sweated beneath a tube train trying to jack it off a jumper? But I quickly found she was in the minority and the other non-uniformed personnel were very nice, and in the case of one, would have made an excellent firefighter had he chosen that path.

I witnessed calls come in from station based personnel who, when they discovered they were speaking to a non-uniformed person, were rude and patronising beyond belief. I hated working in an office and detested the nine-day fortnight but stuck it out for a year and then managed to get back to Battersea when Bill Buddle retired. But in that year I enjoyed working with my non-uniformed colleagues and had a few good nights down the pub with them. They were committed and professional, and really not that different to us.

Ultimately, every employee of the LFEPA operates to ensure the big red trucks go out the doors when they're needed, with a crew of competent, professionally trained staff. Some of the people in support roles, both uniformed and non-uniformed seem to forget that. But equally, some of the big red trucks contain incompetent, unprofessional half-wits who care nothing for their training or performance. And don't get me started on how the phone gets answered at fire stations at times!!

One more point about civilians. The term 'civilian' is used under international humanitarian law to identify persons that are not members of a nation's armed forces. I accept that a colloquialism exists in the emergency services, but essentially, as members of the LFEPA, we are all civilians. You're either uniformed or non-uniformed.

.....unless you served in HM Forces, in which case 'once a squaddie, always a squaddie'!!

BlazingPalace

As always Dave a well thought out reasoned response to the post. In most walks of life there are good and bad including our own non uniformed and uniformed.
The question must be then why have they not posted a reply? Is it because they feel that some how they may get berated by uniformed personnel or they just don’t care enough about the job to spend their off duty time surfing the web?
And in case any non uniformed members are reading this it is not a dig just a question, I feel if there was a greater understanding on both sides then perhaps we could somehow move this in a positive direction.
Perhaps we could have a sort of job swap for a day. My partner works for the Home Office and they have an “out of office experience” were they can spend time with another department seeing how her work effects that department.
Perhaps non uniformed personnel could visit a station for a day and watch and see what we (in particular the watch officers) have to deal with; likewise we could spend a day with them.
Just a thought.

Merry Christmas

Blaze Bear

Good call Dave,

I like yourself mix with both on a daily basis. I can''t remember having a run in with any of them, Maybe lucky. I seam to have run ins with the uniform lot (no laughing Dave :roll: )

I tend to call them civies and thats a habit I've had for soooooooooo long I'm not gonna change :wink: think they're called FSSS (fire service support staff), I tend to find they like us just go to work to pay the bills.

Blazing....not sure if we have any support staff signed onto the forum, as its open you can come on here and read it as a guest and never post. I may need to do some pimping when I back at work and get the site known to more of the FSSS.

I think that neither they or us are the 'be all and end all' of the brigade,

Rob

Straight8

Samm

Well, I'm pretty new to the LFB, I joined the IT Service Desk in September but I find it fascinating what you all do. I often find the time, while I'm fixing a call on the phone, to find out what you've been up to during the day/ night etc. I'm a little dissapointed I've been at LFB over 6 months but haven't had any introduction to the brigade, it's a shame we aren't told more. As I always say, neither you or I would exist without the other. Hehehe, I've been trying to wangle a day at a Station to see exactly what goes on.

smudger22

Hi Samm,
If your the only IT samm then I may have spoken to you the other day, you phoned Wimbledon about our printers not working?
Anyway, the Brigade does take the occasional senior managemnet to station, I used to be at Westminster and a couple of times we have senior management who had just joined the Brigade come over to see what a station looked like!
I'm sure you will get more than one offer, but anytime you're passing Wimbledon (w/w) just pop in, we have loads of people pop in, we're very friendly

The local CSPO's, fire brigade enthuesiasts from this country and others.
Anyway, like I said, just pop in, tea and a biscuit usally assured. :D
Ian,

Samm

Hi Ian,
Thanks for the offer of a tea and biccie, hope there's a jammy dodger going??? :) Yes, I am the only IT Samm, so it would've been me, so as you know, I don't hold up the 'them and us' thing at all :)

Samm

Oooo, forgot to say, if anyone's in Union Street then pop in and say Hi, I'm maintaining stocks of sweeties on my desk, so you're welcome to some of those :) We're on the 1st floor in the back left hand corner.

smudger22

You sure we're allowed in there?
Big scary place full of 'Senior Managers'! Ho Ho
But your offer of sweets has pricked my ears up
Anyone that knows me knows I like the odd choccie or two.

Samm

I've even got Popping candy :lol:

BlazingPalace

smudger you will never fit in to your wedding suit if you go around eating sweeties or biscuits

smudger22

You know the saying sir, " You can never have enough chocolate".
Very famous saying.

Anyway, since you've abandoned us, I've lost 3/4 of a stone!
Ha!
(as you'll see tomorrow at the Chinese where I put it all back on again).

Straight8

Samm

It is me and thanks :wink:

Blaze Bear

Samm

hahaha, the calls to the IT Service Desk go up!!! hahaha!!! if you do speak to me though, introduce yourself, I spoke to Ian today :)

Samm

I love the fact I get a whole section on this forum to myself :lol: :wink:

Cyclops246

Samm,

I'm gonna drop into this section of the forum so you're not alone. How are you finding things in Union Street? I heard it referred to as 'Meerkat Manor' the other day.....when you walk in all these heads pop up from behind computer screens.

Samm

I love that phrase!!! :lol: I really like it, we were in Rear Block before so anything's better. I've got the added bonus of being in a little glass room (they were afraid WE would make too much noise) but it means that we have some privacy and it's quieter there. It's great to be able to meet some of the people I speak to too, put names to faces. :D :wink:

Cyclops246

I went to Union Street for a USAR meeting a couple of months ago. It's very....er....corporate. Very open plan and modern. I was taken to task very early on for speaking too loudly and using inappropriate Anglo-Saxonisms (oops!!). Then was charged a fortune for some food in the canteen. Or is that restaurant???

Blaze Bear

One word

IKEA

Samm

you're just jealous :wink: :lol: