The Arlington County Fire Department has a new plan for the next five years centered on recruitment, retention and employee wellbeing.
ACFD’s first-ever strategic plan, released earlier this month, is part of an effort to refocus the department around core values. Based on community and employee concerns about staffing, health and workplace culture, the agency developed the document to solve problems and improve existing systems.
ACFD’s new mission statement says, “The Arlington County Fire Department protects lives and property. We commit to serving you with the same compassion, professionalism, and accountability we expect of ourselves.”
Specific goals include researching “barriers to candidates’ success” and improving retention with “a system to capture information that guarantees safety from retribution,” per an accompanying management and implementation guide. Also emphasized are wellness initiatives such as mental-health evaluations, cancer-reduction research and the establishment of a pregnancy and postpartum policy.
Other objectives focus on community outreach and distribution of resources across fire stations.
“I invite each of you to join us as we embark on this journey to elevate the services of the Arlington County Fire Department,” Chief David Povlitz wrote in an introduction to the plan. “Together, let us foster a culture of safety, responsiveness, and community partnership that will safeguard our county for years to come.”
The fire department began developing the strategic plan amid internal changes in response to allegations of harassment of female employees and hazing of recruits. Codified goals are meant to answer questions about “where we are going, and how do we plan to get there,” Assistant Fire Chief Jason Jenkins said in November.
“This is our opportunity to rebrand our mission, reimagine our core values to again focus on our future,” he said.
ACFD developed the plan through work sessions with community members and employees.
In a list of “areas of community concern,” the agency’s internal culture was one of the public’s highest priorities. Worries included “bullying, harassment, assaults within the department” and ensuring that “women firefighters are treated with the respect they deserve as professionals.”
The other top concern related to making sure “personnel are representative of [the] community; well-paid and stay on [the] job for a long time.”
Employees within ACFD, meanwhile, listed concerns about long hours, outdated policies and call-related trauma. They hoped to develop an agency that has “a high retention rate with a highly experienced workforce,” where staff can “raise concerns without fear of retribution.”
ACFD currently faces a substantial staffing shortage, with 25 uniformed vacancies as of February. At the same time, according to the strategic plan, calls for service have swelled from 25,000 in 2020 to 33,000 in 2023.
47 firefighters were unable to go home to their families this past weekend. #ACFD is at critical staffing levels, and the challenges posed by attrition and vacancies have reached historic proportions. It’s time for the County Board to take decisive action. pic.twitter.com/IvLVx1FlMn
— Arlington Professional Firefighters (@IAFF2800) April 16, 2024
The department’s union, IAFF Local 2800, supported the plan as a way to improve public safety and rebuild personnel ranks. But it has also argued that better staffing hinges on better pay.
Despite the union’s efforts, a pay raise won’t be coming to firefighters this budget cycle. The Arlington County Board did approve a $2,750 bonus for all first responders, however.
The implementation guide is framed as a living document that will require support from both the community and the department. Success depends on “a true focus on implementing and institutionalizing this plan,” the document says.
“Whether or not they participated in the development of the community-driven strategic plan, all agency stakeholders must recognize that this plan is for the entire agency and is not just representative of the ACFD’s leadership,” it says. “Perceived and actual ownership across the Arlington County Fire Department increases the probability of success and the realization of the desired outcomes.”