For City Council Meeting January 28, 2025
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Mike Milhiser, Interim City Manager
AUTHOR: Brian Park, Fire Chief
Title
Consideration to Amend the Full-Time Employee (FTE) Allocation for the Rialto Fire Department to Add Two Paramedic and Two EMT Positions to Backfill Long-Term Leave of Absences.
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Approve the amendment to the Rialto Fire Department's Full-Time Employee (FTE) allocation to add two (2) Paramedic and two (2) EMT positions.
2. Authorize the City Manager or their designee to execute all documents necessary to implement this change.
BACKGROUND
The Rialto Fire Department provides ambulance response and patient transportation services. Currently, the department's staffing includes 12 full-time EMTs and 14 full-time Paramedics. These positions experience high attrition rates due to employees seeking opportunities to become Firefighter/Paramedics. While the department often absorbs qualified individuals into Firefighter/Paramedic roles, the availability of such positions is limited. As a result, many employees leave for other agencies upon qualification.
Another significant challenge is the frequent requests for leaves of absence by EMTs and Paramedics to attend Fire Academy or Paramedic school, for example. During extended absences, vacancies cannot be temporarily filled due to personnel rules, resulting in operational disruptions and increased overtime costs for remaining staff.
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION
Adding two Paramedic and two EMT positions to the department's FTE allocation would provide the flexibility needed to address these challenges. These additional positions would not increase operational deployment but instead, serve as a contingency to maintain staffing levels during long-term absences. As such, these positions will be considered temporary and not permanently filled.
This proactive approach would:
* Reduce the operational strain and o...
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