I'm A Crusty Old Joe (iacoj)

[joejoe33]

I love my leather helmet. I love the traditions of our profession.

I believe if a rookie is a slacker with his station duties, he's a slacker on the fireground.

Rookies, probies, newbies, or FNG's etc. need to be studying district maps, sweeping and mopping, familiarizing the apparatus, doing laundry, having motivation, polishing the slide pole, doing practice drills, cleaning toilets, studying standard procedures, making coffee, doing practice evolutions, washing and drying dishes, washing apparatus, doing yard work, cleaning tools on the apparatus, vacuuming, shining his shoes, saying "Yes sir" everytime, maintaining wood handled tools, sweeping and mopping the apparatus bay, starting and running the K-12, cleaning behind the refrigerator, starting and running the PPV fan, dusting and polishing, knowing where the priming resevoir is on the engine, checking and operating the Amkus tools, checking and rechecking his complete SCBA, cleaning oils spots off the apparatus room floor, practice donning his firefighting gear, volunteering to strip and wax the floors, removing and replacing ladders correctly on the apparatus, cleaning the apparatus interior, being a "team" player, asking "how to" when you don't know "how to", knowing how to load a triple flat load crosslay, taking out the trash, knowing the station house rules, and........................... .most importantly keeping your mouth shut.

This list is not inclusive. I'm crusty and type with two fingers. My brothers in the forum may feel free to add to this list.

How our new guy made his probation is mind boggling.

Any of you members of the real IACOJ's feel free to add to this list. I'll print it out for the knucklehead. :)

[firemangeorge]

I agree that the fng's should be doing all of that, but we should be also. A lazy old jake in the fire house is as bad or worse than a lazy probie. The probies can only learn and understand their duties if we are doing those things with them.

fg

[Ltmdepas3280]

Even though Im still waiting for my I.A.C.O.J. paperwork to come through :D I'll toss one .....RESPECT.... for the men that do the job day in and day out and be willing to listen to the veterans because we have made this far. Probies need to keep mouth shut and eyes and ears open and learn the skills that my save there life some day. Ditto to george:cool:

[CaptainGonzo]

Probies have to earn our trust.
Probies have to earn their crust.

Respect cannot be demanded...it has to be earned.

Questions about the job should be encouraged...it's the ones that don't say a word and think they know it all that scare the daylights out of me. Someone else here had the perfect term...360's. Three days on the job, but 60 years worth of experience. :rolleyes:

How does one get respect? By taking the rookies under their wing and showing them the right way to do the job...keeping them away from the skaters and slackers who think they have trust and think they have crust, but all they have on the brain is rust!

They are the "skaters" who always manage to turn a two minute detail into a two hour one and still manage to **** it up.

They are the ones who treat the fire department as their second job.

They are the ones that tell you "I can do the job"...funny, I didn't see the term "doorway dancer" in the job description!

[Adze39]

The Captain, and our Esteemed Leader of the IACOJ, has spoken!

[1835Wayne]

The President has spoken!!!!

[Ltmdepas3280]

Gonzo

I agree with you 1000 percent on respect cannot be demanded but it should be on the probies mind when dealing with the older more experienced members of the job. They have the knowledge that may save his life someday plus if they have made it this far they must have a little something on the ball. I have always felt the even the biggest slug on the job has something to offer ( even if its only showing a new guy how to mop the floor correctly). Question should also be asked and hope that the answer is listen too. Being a newly promoted Lt. I have had the pleasure of being a training officer to a new man and I must say this kid has all the qualities and makings of a chief some day , he listen , ask question and respects everyone on the shift plus he eats like a horse , all the qualities of a first class Jake. I wish I had a dozen more like him ;)

[joejoe33]

This guy just doesn't get it. He's younger and I can still work circles around him.

I think we have tried everything we can legally do and he just doesn't get it. We've talked with him, showed him, gave him a specific list, everything but draw him a crayola picture. If we need to draw him a crayola picture, do we really need him? There are literally hundreds of guys hungry for a job in the fire service.

He doesn't study, doesn't ask questions and has zero initiative. He seems to be very self-centered and hasn't grasped the team concept. I find him cutting corners on his station duties. I'm concerned about the transition of his corner cutting to the fireground. I think he fluffed everybody to get through his probation.

We just hired three rookies right out of the fire academy that are top notch in my opinion. This guy came from another organization. This may be the root of the problem. He's the newbie until we get another newbie. He certainly hasn't earned the respect of our shift.:D

[mfgentili]

Wow joejoe, anymore crust on you and there'd be no bread! Don't worry the new guy will eventually come around. If not, toast him and maybe he'll pick up a little crust.:D

[hfd66truck]

Every new guy show be forced, yup forced, to sit down with the crustiest old time you have(retired or otherwise), whatever historical info you have(photos etc) and be told to keep fillin' the jakes coffee cup.

The history/stories/lessons learned from this type of experience. All those things in your list....they'd be taught here. Plus a hundred others.

Seen and not heard, preferably seen working and not heard.

And hear hear for the Esteemed Jake from Ohio.....we should be doing it too. What a better way to teach than by example.

Dave

[Temptaker]

First I agree with everyone. I am wondering something. Since he came from another organization, does he consider himself to be a probie. Doesn't sound like he does to me from what you have said. To you he IS a probie, that means when you say jump he should be asking how high as his feet leave the floor. If he came to you with bad habits, as indicated by the cutting corners, maybe it's time for 'tough love' (I hate that phrase)I'm sure this will eventually come back to bite me in the a$$, right when I least expect it. Has he had to clean the bay floor with his tooth brush yet?

I'm sure that there are any number of horrible things that you could come up with for this guy to do. I'm sure that it would also be a last resort. If the chain isn't broken now, where will it be in a year or two?

I'm sorry if anyone thinks this is out of line. I just know of a case up here where a guy came on in his early 40's from another dept. He thought he was god... knew everything, the fact that he was more rural before compared to being in a city with 2.3 million people didn't seem to cross his mind. He wouldn't take orders from one of the officers who was younger then he was, and he wouldn't help any of the other younger guys with station duties. They literally had to break him. Now he RUNS to answer the phone, but in truth he should have been doing that to begin with.

[FFPug163]

I agree with you on everything except making coffee - as a boot I was banned from getting near the coffeemaker (with good reason), and most boots I've had are in the same league as me (they make a mean slice of coffee):eek:

[NJFFSA16]

Originally posted by mfgentili
Don't worry the new guy will eventually come around. If not, toast him and maybe he'll pick up a little crust.:D

What worries me is that this guy will get someone toasted....before he comes around. And that should be everyone's concern.

Be careful around this one...he may cook your goose!:(

[hfd66truck]

I have made a few pots of road tar in my time....they come in handy for those small holes in the apron.

:D

[EFFD131]

I had 17 years in a vollie dept in NY State. When I moved to PA
and joined the vollie dept. there I was now a newbie. For my six month probation period I worked like a newbie, kept my mouth shut, humped hose, washed trucks, and was the gofer at calls.I beleive
some of the veterans F/F's were worried that someone with 17 years might have an attitude, Or someone 45 couldn't do the job.I beleive by taking that initial approach I gained the respect of the veterans. It also seemed to get the young newbies to work a little harder. I'am now taking taking a FF Survival class with the dept's officers, and they would like me to be part of there newly formed RIT Team.I'll still hump hose, wash trucks, and be a gofer when necessary,BUT I might not keep my mouth shut.


Stay Safe And Work Hard,
EFFD131

[PuffyNPFD]

By joejoe's standards I think I had an easy probie period. I did many of those things but the guys that I worked with on that shift led by example so they were right there with me. Reinforced the teamwork concept.