EMT pay for East Bay companies?

[EMTeastman]

I wasn't sure where to look for starting pay for certain companies in my area, so I wanted to see if anyone else knew. I want to see how much Royal Ambulance, Westmed, or any other companies in the East Bay pay? Any info is greatly appreciated, as I'm sort of new to the EMT field (I start EMT class in January).

Thanks!

 

[Carlos Danger]

I hear they are all pretty competitive, around $85-$90k for newbies.







Just kidding. I don't even know where you are talking about.

 

[Aprz]

I would recommend applying to every ambulance company in the Bay Area, and consider applying at ambulance companies near the Bay Area. I would advise against applying only to ambulance companies in the Easy Bay; it can be difficult to get an EMT job.

This is a list of companies in or near the Bay Area. I bolded the ones that are in the East Bay.

ProTransport-1 (San Francisco, Oakland, Hayward, Richmond, Palo Alto, Pleasant Hill)
Royal Ambulance (San Leandro, San Jose)
Rural/Metro (San Jose (911), Pacheco (IFT), Hayward (IFT), Milpitas (IFT))
Bayshore Ambulance (Foster City, San Francisco, San Jose)
Silicon Valley Ambulance (San Jose, Morgan Hill)
Westmed Ambulance (San Jose, Hayward/Union City)
Falck Ambulance (San Carlos, Concord, San Mateo)
American Medical Response (AMR) (San Francisco, Concord, Santa Rosa, Napa)
King American Ambulance (San Francisco)
Golden State Ambulance (San Jose)
Norcal Ambulance (Fremont, Oakland)
Paramedics Plus (San Leando, Newark)
California Ambulance (Martinez)
Falcon Ambulance (Solano County?)
VeriHealth (I think San Mateo County? Sonoma County? Recently purchased by Falck)
Riggs Ambulance Service (RAS) (Merced County)
Medic Ambulance (Solano and Sacramento County)

CA EMSA Employment List

There is a huge hourly pay gap between companies that respond to 911 calls versus companies that do interfacility transfers (IFT). Many new EMTs are unaware of IFT. IFT is transporting from one facility to another eg transporting from a convalescent home to dialysis appointment, often non emergent.

In my opinion, getting hired by a company that does 911 in the bay area is like winning the lottery. Although I hear people say that companies that respond to 911 prefer people with experience, I've seen many people with little to no experience get hired.

Most IFT companies starting pay to be minimum wage to $11.50/hour, some pay call bonuses. American Medical Response (does both 911 and IFT in many areas), Verihealth, Falck, and Patient Plus (division of Paramedic Plus, which does 911) are exceptions. If full time, expect $18,000/year - $31,000/year.

Most 911 companies starting pay to be $15-$19/hour. Riggs Ambulance and Medic Ambulance are exceptions I believe, and pay similarly to IFT companies. I am not sure how much to expect full time at a 911 company. My guess would be around $32,000/year - $41,000/year.

Rural/Metro is unique. They have two different divisions: Rural/Metro Santa Clara and Rural/Metro of Northern California. Rural/Metro Santa Clara is listed on their website as San Jose. Rural/Metro Santa Clara responds to 911 calls in Santa Clara County, and they are paid somewhere around $17-$18/hour I believe. Rural/Metro of Northern California is listed on their website as Milpitas only, but if hired at Milpitas, you may be working in Milpitas, Hayward, or Pacheco. Pacheco is a small cities near Concord, Martinez, or Pleasant Hill if you are familiar with any of those cities. Rural/Metro of Northern California starting pay is $11.50/hour, no night differential, no call bonuses, but they do pay overtime after 8 hours, and double time after 12 hours (it seems many companies do not pay overtime after 8 hours and double time after 12 hours due to collective bargaining agreements, 24 hour shifts, the employee signing a form consenting to not receive overtime/double, or something else, I think overtime/doubletime is very confusing in this field). These two divisions are treated as separate divisions (even if located in the same county). If you get hired at one, you will not be allowed to "transfer" to another division for at least a year. I use the word "transfer" because you do not simply just transfer divisions when there are openings, you must apply online and interview again, and you will be competing against others who do not work for Rural/Metro. What happens to you at one Rural/Metro may count against you if attempting to "transfer". In other words, getting hired at Rural/Metro of Northern California (their IFT division) is not a "foot in the door" to getting hired/"transferred" to Rural/Metro Santa Clara (their 911 division). It will inhibit you for at least one year from getting hired at the 911 division, and things (especially getting fired) may count against you when attempting to "transfer". Because it's so rare that the 911 divisions hires, and because it's difficult to get hired regardless, I still recommend applying to their IFT division.

Good luck!

 

[EMTeastman]

Wow, thanks man! This was way more than I expected to hear! Perfect for someone who is just starting to learn about the EMT field such as me. I had no idea what IFT was or really anything about the different companies, so I greatly appreciate the information you shared. Thank you so much!

 

[1979nd]

don't forget St. Joseph's ambo co in San Rafael. I'm pretty sure if you show up to the interview and put on a smile and positive attitude you'll get hired. 98% of your calls will be IFT in SF. they run 12 and 24's - 24's will be available if you've been there a long time, like 4=6 months. I believe their pay for EMT's is low, like 8-9 buck/hour.... crappy company but hey, it's a foot in the door. (oh and they run some 911 for Marin Co. too but don't count on doing anything good)

 

[EMTeastman]

don't forget St. Joseph's ambo co in San Rafael. I'm pretty sure if you show up to the interview and put on a smile and positive attitude you'll get hired. 98% of your calls will be IFT in SF. they run 12 and 24's - 24's will be available if you've been there a long time, like 4=6 months. I believe their pay for EMT's is low, like 8-9 buck/hour.... crappy company but hey, it's a foot in the door. (oh and they run some 911 for Marin Co. too but don't count on doing anything good)

Okay, thanks for your input! I'm going to look into all these companies, and hopefully get hired once I get my EMT cert =)