# CA EMTs and Medics looking for a fresh start?



## Joe (Jun 25, 2013)

Hall Ambulance in Kern county is accepting applications for EMT and Paramedic. If you want to work in a somewhat busy, first in, 911 system with state of the art equipment, THIS IS YOUR CHANCE! Kern county is one of the best counties in Ca with a wide scope and freedom to act as a true 3rd service paramedic. Company is very employee oriented that has been around for 42 years. If you interested or have questions please pm. Come join our team!


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## terrible one (Jun 25, 2013)

3rd service?


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## SeanEddy (Jun 25, 2013)

I don't think they meant "3rd service" in the traditional sense. They just mean you're working as a paramedic separate from the 2 major branches of public safety. Great place to work. I spent the majority of my career there.


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## JPINFV (Jun 25, 2013)

terrible one said:


> 3rd service?


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## TRSpeed (Jun 25, 2013)

Definitely agree. Coming from AMR Riverside and other 911 companies. This is definitely the place you want to be. 

Excellent employee orientated place, excellent equipment,  protocols, etc. I'm very happy here. This is a place where employees come before business.


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## Jim37F (Jun 25, 2013)

Dang, a little over a 2 hour drive from here (Azusa) to Bakersfield, and I drive a pickup truck. I already drive two hours in the opposite direction every month to drill with my Army Reserve unit in San Diego :-/

What kind of pay/benefits would I be looking at as a Basic?


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## TRSpeed (Jun 26, 2013)

Jim37F said:


> Dang, a little over a 2 hour drive from here (Azusa) to Bakersfield, and I drive a pickup truck. I already drive two hours in the opposite direction every month to drill with my Army Reserve unit in San Diego :-/
> 
> What kind of pay/benefits would I be looking at as a Basic?



Pay is DOE. Benefits are kaiser with 100% employer contribution at month 4. I believe step 1 is 10.20 with OT after 8hrs on a 12 hr shift. 

I live 2 hrs away aswell but rent a room for the 3/4 work days a wk.


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## Joe (Jun 29, 2013)

TRSpeed is correct. They do take into consideration years of exp. 

Yes maybe I was unclear about the 3rd service thing. We don't transport because fire says so, and were not a stepchild employee of fire. We operate as a team but all fire (with the exception being one city in the county) is bls.


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## JPINFV (Jun 29, 2013)

Joe said:


> TRSpeed is correct. They do take into consideration years of exp.
> 
> Yes maybe I was unclear about the 3rd service thing. We don't transport because fire says so, and were not a stepchild employee of fire. We operate as a team but all fire (with the exception being one city in the county) is bls.


  You keep using that term. I do not think it means what you think it means. 


Private EMS = non-government entity. (example: AMR, Rural Metro, Hall, etc)

3rd service = government agency that isn't the police or fire departments. (example: Boston EMS, Wake County EMS, etc)


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## RocketMedic (Jun 30, 2013)

Did Hall buy Liberty out in Ridgecrest yet?


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## MySandie (Jun 30, 2013)

TRSpeed said:


> Pay is DOE. Benefits are kaiser with 100% employer contribution at month 4. I believe step 1 is 10.20 with OT after 8hrs on a 12 hr shift.
> 
> I live 2 hrs away as well but rent a room for the 3/4 work days a wk.



Are you kidding me?  Starting pay for an EMT is only $10.40 an hour?  That's ridiculous!  

A barista at a Starbucks inside any Target store starts out at $9.38/hr.  
Granted, OT for hours 9-12 on a 12-hr shift is a saving grace.....but geez!

Although, the "best of us" who go into the medical field, aren't in it for the money....a single person with no write-offs and working 12/3 a week is only making $437 a week; minus 18% in taxes = about $360/week ~ $1550 monthly.

Most 'educated' drug-dealers make that amount in a week!  No wonder our country is going down-hill.  Our priorities are all messed-up.

I need to get off this site and study for that NCLEX-RN exam next week!  I get stuck-on-stupid, sometimes, especially when stressed-out about a test, and find myself doing anything BUT studying!  :wacko:

Just kill me now.  Consider it palliative care!


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## STXmedic (Jun 30, 2013)

MySandie said:


> Are you kidding me?  Starting pay for an EMT is only $10.40 an hour?  That's ridiculous!
> 
> A barista at a Starbucks inside any Target store starts out at $9.38/hr.
> Granted, OT for hours 9-12 on a 12-hr shift is a saving grace.....but geez!
> ...



1) OT isn't typically paid the way you're used to. Hours 9-12 aren't overtime unless you're already over 40hrs for that week. Many companies will force you to stop at 40hrs (as to not have to pay OT), while many others will make you work 6-7 days/wk of 12-15 hour shifts. Either way is not ideal, but both are quite common.

2) You have to realize that a run of the mill EMT can be trained in as little as 5 weeks (more commonly 3 months). There really isn't much training or education involved. Paramedic isn't much better, though at least it's an extra year on top of EMT. Along similar lines, EMTs are churned out so fast it would make your head spin. There are more EMTs than there are jobs to work, and many of them will jump at the chance of any job for any low pay just so they can get experience for that elusive and oh so sought after 911 gig. So from the employers perspective, they have a huge pool of poorly educated applicants who are nearly all willing to work for cents. So why would they pay any decent salary if they don't have to? 

It gets a little better as a paramedic. There are some great paying jobs out there for medics- and some basics (medics where I work make over 100k), but those jobs are hard to come by and take dedication, knowledge, and luck to score.

The sampling of EMTs and paramedics you see here at EMTLife aren't an accurate representative of the median field provider. Many here come to learn and further themselves, while most in the field make you want to punch a baby. It's actually quite frustrating. I know you get a fair amount of that in nursing (my wife is a BSN and voices her frustrations frequently), but at least your coworkers come out with a decent base knowledge.


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## wanderingmedic (Jun 30, 2013)

PoeticInjustice said:


> It gets a little better as a paramedic. There are some great paying jobs out there for medics- and some basics (medics where I work make over 100k), but those jobs are hard to come by and take dedication, knowledge, and luck to score.



Where on earth do you work? International gig?


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## STXmedic (Jun 30, 2013)

azemtb255 said:


> Where on earth do you work? International gig?



Major city FD. FD's tend to be able to pay considerably higher wages than private/third services are capable of. The down side: you have to be a firefighter, too.


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## DesertMedic66 (Jun 30, 2013)

PoeticInjustice said:


> 1) OT isn't typically paid the way you're used to. Hours 9-12 aren't overtime unless you're already over 40hrs for that week. Many companies will force you to stop at 40hrs (as to not have to pay OT), while many others will make you work 6-7 days/wk of 12-15 hour shifts. Either way is not ideal, but both are quite common.



All depends what is state law, union agreements, and contracts. 

For my company our shortest shift is 12 hours. For the first 8 hours of our shift it is normal pay. The next 4 hours is OT. Anything over 12 hours in the same day is Double Time regardless of how many hours a week we have. During our busy season we can pick up shifts for double time pay the whole shift.


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## shfd739 (Jun 30, 2013)

PoeticInjustice said:


> Major city FD. FD's tend to be able to pay considerably higher wages than private/third services are capable of. The down side: you have to be a firefighter, too.



Isn't that with a pretty fair amount of OT shifts though? Didn't think your average ff/paramedic was making six figures working their regular scheduled shifts


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## TRSpeed (Jun 30, 2013)

Rocketmedic40 said:


> Did Hall buy Liberty out in Ridgecrest yet?



Lol not yet. We dispatch for them though.  Its crazy how much detail Mr. Hall puts on his rigs always being washed and waxed. Just appearance in general for anything that has or wears his company logo.


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## Wheel (Jun 30, 2013)

What is the medic pay like, and what shifts are available?


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## STXmedic (Jun 30, 2013)

shfd739 said:


> Isn't that with a pretty fair amount of OT shifts though? Didn't think your average ff/paramedic was making six figures working their regular scheduled shifts



It's taking some OT, but not a ton. The guys who work tons of OT will clear about 130. I think zero OT for the year puts you low 90s.


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