CompGeo Salary Survey Benchmark Job Summary and Competencies

Forest Fire Fighters

The Benchmark Job Description below represents the specific Position Characteristics of the job used in the Salary Survey. Benchmark Job Descriptions should be inspected carefully to review the degree of matching between an organizations' Job and the Salary Survey Benchmark. Matching internal Jobs to Salary Survey Benchmark Jobs should not be done on Job Title alone. A thorough comparison of Salary Survey Benchmark to Internal Job Descriptions is recommended. A good overlap should exist on any comparisons used on critical Job Dimensions and Competencies.
 
CompGeo Occupation Group: Protective Services
Job Family: Fire Service
Benchmark Title: Forest Fire Fighters
 
Summary Job Description Tasks
Control and suppress fires in forests or vacant public land. Maintain contact with fire dispatchers at all times to notify them of the need for additional firefighters and supplies, or to detail any difficulties encountered.
 
Rescue fire victims, and administer emergency medical aid.
 
Collaborate with other firefighters as a member of a firefighting crew.
 
Patrol burned areas after fires to locate and eliminate hot spots that may restart fires.
 
Extinguish flames and embers to suppress fires, using shovels, or engine- or hand-driven water or chemical pumps.
 
Fell trees, cut and clear brush, and dig trenches to create firelines, using axes, chainsaws or shovels.
 
Maintain knowledge of current firefighting practices by participating in drills and by attending seminars, conventions, and conferences.
 
Operate pumps connected to high-pressure hoses.
 
Participate in physical training to maintain high levels of physical fitness.
 
Establish water supplies, connect hoses, and direct water onto fires.
 
Maintain fire equipment and firehouse living quarters.
 
Inform and educate the public about fire prevention.
 
Take action to contain any hazardous chemicals that could catch fire, leak, or spill.
 
Organize fire caches, positioning equipment for the most effective response.
 
Transport personnel and cargo to and from fire areas.
 
Participate in fire prevention and inspection programs.
 
Perform forest maintenance and improvement tasks such as cutting brush, planting trees, building trails and marking timber.
 
Test and maintain tools, equipment, jump gear and parachutes to ensure readiness for fire suppression activities.
 
Observe forest areas from fire lookout towers to spot potential problems.
 
Orient self in relation to fire, using compass and map, and collect supplies and equipment dropped by parachute.
 
Serve as fully trained lead helicopter crewmember and as helispot manager.
 
Drop weighted paper streamers from aircraft to determine the speed and direction of the wind at fire sites.
 
 
CompGeo Occupation Group: Protective Services
Job Family: Fire Service
Benchmark Title: Forest Fire Fighters
 
Important Knowledge Competencies Competency Description
Administration and Management Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
 
Public Safety and Security Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
 
Geography Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
 
Education and Training Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
 
Mechanical Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
 
Customer and Personal Service Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
 
English Language Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
 
Transportation Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
 
Building and Construction Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
 
Personnel and Human Resources Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
 
Telecommunications Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
 
Law and Government Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
 
Communications and Media Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
 
Mathematics Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
 
Clerical Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
 
 
CompGeo Occupation Group: Protective Services
Job Family: Fire Service
Benchmark Title: Forest Fire Fighters
 
Important Skill Competencies Competency Description
Active Listening Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
 
Speaking Talking to others to convey information effectively.
 
Monitoring Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
 
Coordination Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
 
Service Orientation Actively looking for ways to help people.
 
Operation Monitoring Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
 
Reading Comprehension Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
 
Critical Thinking Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
 
Instructing Teaching others how to do something.
 
Operation and Control Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
 
Judgment and Decision Making Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
 
Time Management Managing one's own time and the time of others.
 
Complex Problem Solving Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
 
Writing Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
 
Social Perceptiveness Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
 
Active Learning Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
 
Learning Strategies Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
 
Equipment Maintenance Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
 
Quality Control Analysis Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
 
Management of Personnel Resources Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
 
Persuasion Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
 
Negotiation Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
 
Equipment Selection Determining the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
 
Troubleshooting Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
 
Repairing Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
 
Systems Analysis Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
 
Systems Evaluation Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
 
 
CompGeo Occupation Group: Protective Services
Job Family: Fire Service
Benchmark Title: Forest Fire Fighters
 
Important Ability Competencies Competency Description
Oral Comprehension The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
 
Oral Expression The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
 
Problem Sensitivity The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
 
Manual Dexterity The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
 
Control Precision The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
 
Deductive Reasoning The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
 
Inductive Reasoning The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
 
Multilimb Coordination The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
 
Static Strength The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
 
Trunk Strength The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without 'giving out' or fatiguing.
 
Stamina The ability to exert yourself physically over long periods of time without getting winded or out of breath.
 
Near Vision The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
 
Reaction Time The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
 
Far Vision The ability to see details at a distance.
 
Depth Perception The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
 
Speech Clarity The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
 
Written Comprehension The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
 
Visualization The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
 
Selective Attention The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
 
Arm-Hand Steadiness The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
 
Finger Dexterity The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
 
Response Orientation The ability to choose quickly between two or more movements in response to two or more different signals (lights, sounds, pictures). It includes the speed with which the correct response is started with the hand, foot, or other body part.
 
Written Expression The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
 
Perceptual Speed The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
 
Time Sharing The ability to shift back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information (such as speech, sounds, touch, or other sources).
 
Rate Control The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
 
Dynamic Strength The ability to exert muscle force repeatedly or continuously over time. This involves muscular endurance and resistance to muscle fatigue.
 
Visual Color Discrimination The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
 
Speech Recognition The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
 
Fluency of Ideas The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
 
Information Ordering The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
 
Flexibility of Closure The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
 
Spatial Orientation The ability to know your location in relation to the environment or to know where other objects are in relation to you.
 
Speed of Limb Movement The ability to quickly move the arms and legs.
 
Gross Body Equilibrium The ability to keep or regain your body balance or stay upright when in an unstable position.
 
Auditory Attention The ability to focus on a single source of sound in the presence of other distracting sounds.
 
Category Flexibility The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
 
Extent Flexibility The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
 
Gross Body Coordination The ability to coordinate the movement of your arms, legs, and torso together when the whole body is in motion.
 
Hearing Sensitivity The ability to detect or tell the differences between sounds that vary in pitch and loudness.
 
Originality The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
 
Speed of Closure The ability to quickly make sense of, combine, and organize information into meaningful patterns.
 
Peripheral Vision The ability to see objects or movement of objects to one's side when the eyes are looking ahead.
 
Glare Sensitivity The ability to see objects in the presence of glare or bright lighting.
 
Night Vision The ability to see under low light conditions.
 
 
CompGeo Occupation Group: Protective Services
Job Family: Fire Service
Benchmark Title: Forest Fire Fighters
 
Prerequisite Qualification Category Education and Experience Level
Required Level of Education High School Diploma (or GED or High School Equivalence Certificate)
 
On-the-Job Training Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year
 
Related Work Experience None
 
On-Site or In-Plant Training Up to and including 1 month
 
 
CompGeo Occupation Group: Protective Services
Job Family: Fire Service
Benchmark Title: Forest Fire Fighters
 
Alternate Job Title(s)
Crew Boss
Engine Boss
Fire Crew Specialist
Fire Fighter
Fire Technician
Firefighter
Forest Fire Warden
Forest Firefighter
Forest Ranger
Forest Ranger Technician
Forestry Crew Chief
Forestry Technician (Fire)
Handcrew Foreman
Hot Shot
Ranger
Rescue Worker
Smoke Chaser
Smoke Eater
Smoke Jumper
Squad Boss
Wildland Fire Fighter
Wildland Fire Fighter Specialist
Wildland Firefighter
 
CompGeo Occupation Group: Protective Services
Job Family: Fire Service
Benchmark Title: Forest Fire Fighters
 
 
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