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Fire department warns of stressed units, seeks pay adjustments and more recruits to reduce overtime
Summary
Arlington County Fire Department told the board unit‑hour utilization for ambulance and transport units is straining personnel; the department supports pay decompression, two recruit classes and accreditation work tied to standards of cover.
Arlington County Fire Department leaders told the County Board the department is operating under persistent staffing strain that has increased mandatory holds and overtime, and that the department is proposing pay placements and a second recruit school to restore coverage.
Chiefs said the department responds to roughly 33,000 incidents annually and the majority are emergency medical services. An internal standards‑of‑cover and community risk assessment—now near publication—identifies call density in high‑growth corridors (National Landing/Crystal City, Ballston‑Rosslyn, Columbia Pike) and the analysis shows several transport units already operate at unit‑hour utilization levels that indicate system stress.
The department reported rising mandatory hold (overtime) hours: around 8,000 in FY22, about 9,700 in FY23 and roughly 12,000 to 13,000 in FY24. Leadership said that continued overtime and frequent long shifts are unsustainable for personnel. To address the strain the department proposed:
- A $3.0 million allocation to decompress pay lines and place employees on a step schedule to reduce internal compression (the County Manager’s proposed FY26 budget included this adjustment). - $2.0 million in one‑time funds to run a second recruit class in FY26. - Expanded lateral‑hire efforts and plans to hire pharmacy and fire‑marshal staff included in the manager’s budget.
Fire leaders also described a paramedic training partnership (an accelerated program with university partners) that produces higher pass rates than more drawn‑out programs, and noted they had begun a limited lateral‑hire program with early success. The department said accreditation work—three pillars of standards and a self‑assessment manual—will take at least another year to complete and will inform recommended changes to coverage, station siting and other capital plans.
Board members thanked firefighters for responses to recent large incidents including an aircraft collision on January 29 and pressed for follow‑up on station siting, pay details and rapid steps to reduce mandatory overtime. Several members expressed support for the proposed compensation adjustment and the plan for a second recruit school.
