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The Menlo Park Fire Protection District has announced plans to hire over the next year up to 10 entry-level firefighters who are also emergency medical technicians or paramedics.
Chief Harold Schapelhouman said that the district took applications for 300 emergency medical technician/firefighter positions, reaching that maximum in just over two hours. The district also allowed up to 300 applications for paramedic/firefighter positions, but received only 234 applications over 11 days.
On April 1, 332 of those applicants took a written exam for the job. Chief Schapelhouman said some did not show up for the exams and others were disqualified because their applications showed they did not meet the department’s minimum requirements.
The chief said that of the 332 applicants who took the written exams, 309 were male, 11 were female and 12 did not declare. The ethnic breakdown of the applicants was: four American Indian, 22 Asian, 11 African American, 62 Latino, eight Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 19 two or more races, 194 white, and 12 did not declare.
The next step in the process is to interview top candidates. Candidates must also complete and pass a medical, physiological and background screening.
The new firefighters will join 20 new firefighter/EMTs or firefighter/paramedics who the district has hired in the past year.
Chief Schapelhouman said the hiring is due both to retirements of district firefighters and an expansion of the workforce because of development within the district. He said the district’s goal is to have 93 emergency first responders at its seven fire stations, available to operate nine emergency response vehicles 24 hours a day.
The fire district covers Atherton, East Palo Alto, Menlo Park and some of adjacent San Mateo County; it also covers the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory on contract.
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Can the author or someone from MP fire provide further context or explain why these job openings drew such a frenzy of applicants — 300 in 2 hours?
To really know why there were so many applicants, the applicants would have to be asked.
However, this earlier Almanac story may provide some insight.
https://www.almanacnews.com/news/2017/01/17/cause-for-alarm-how-menlo-park-fire-district-pays-its-employees
Moola for life. And get an hour a day on the job to work out.
And shop!
Start with 2 shifts a day – 10 and 14 hours. Drop the package 20% until the line to join is cut in half.
Use the money for education – kids. And roads.