Just curious to see of anyone else has experainced this and if so what was their approach. We have a building that has around 50 staff, there has been alot of relocation recently that has left us with zero fire marshals. Managers have been requested to speak with their staff to identify someone for the role but the relocations have left a negative attitude amongst the staff resulting in no one showing an interest.
We have tried the persuasive approach but have now spoken with the senior manager who needs to communicate the message this is something that needs to be resolved.
What role do your fire marshalls perform? It may be necessary for the management to make this part of someone's job. It's unfortunate when this does happen, but sometimes it can be the only way. Is there any form of renumeration for fire wardens? Even a little bit can sometimes make people more inclined to take it on. Is it something you would fancy doing? You clearly care about this, just to come on here and ask about it. The training is often some of the more "involved" that goes on and can actually be fun having a go with extinguishers and the such in controlled environments. It would also god forbid give you extra skills to be able to deal with an emergency outside of a work environment?
So when the whole world is safe..............what are we going to do then?
Thanks for the reply i am not based at the offices but i am involved with managing Fire throughout the organisation which includes the conducting marshal training. No finanacial incentive im afraid but i have had a request for practical training accepted ,which is a selling point, But this is proving a hard sell
why don't they just make one of the managers the fire Marshall. No reason it has to be someone from the shop floor so to speak. just pick on one of the mangers.
Reddwarf wrote:why don't they just make one of the managers the fire Marshall. No reason it has to be someone from the shop floor so to speak. just pick on one of the mangers.
Red
Exactly, ask the manager(s) to become fire wardens.
The light at the end of the tunnel has been turned off due to budget cuts..............
Reddwarf wrote:why don't they just make one of the managers the fire Marshall. No reason it has to be someone from the shop floor so to speak. just pick on one of the mangers.
Red
Exactly, ask the manager(s) to become fire wardens.
when it comes to fire warden or first aiders the suggestion of a supervisor or manager taking on the role and they look at you if you are mad. surely they would be the best people as they are trained or expected to deal with stressful situation and be able to deal with people.
Occupation: 46 years experience with a metropolitan Fire Brigade and then Fire Safety Manager for a global brand.
Now sort of retired from the fire safety game, but doing the odd job here and there to keep my grey matter working and as I hate sudoku and havent got the back for an allotment
Location: Sunny London where the streets are paved with gold ;)
A large company has been neglecting it's need to appoint fire marshalls and has made cuts leading to staff redundancies and moving staff around five large offices in London. The net result is chaos. The database is now a work of fiction & nobody has a handle on which fire marshall is where. It's likely that many staff are manipulating the chaotic situation by ducking out of being a marshall and failing to own up that they've been trained when a request was made recently. Add to that a near total failure to recruit volunteers and the company are still well short of the minimum numbers required.
Most managers have a role in shutting down their part of the business and managing their dept's business continuity plans during a crisis, so they can't all be fire marshalls. So following a presentation by me pointing out the firm were not legally compliant, the MD has unilaterally decided that directors will nominate persons (he has provided targets) to act as marshalls. A brave move which is bound to annoy some nominees and make their training sessions interesting (all you need is one negative person on a course to really mess up an entire session)
The bottom line is that the RP must appoint persons to assist and the employee must comply with the employer's fire policy. This MD has had the 'balls' to face up to the shortage and his staff will find out next week (or the week after I can't remember). It's so rare to see a manager manage nowadays, so I was very impressed by the MD's courage and desire not to faff around any longer
Thanks for all of your replies.
Keith. I think being a fire marshal is sometimes a thankless task. I have now become the fire trainer and aim to change the old approach which was to provide generic training you get a pat on the head and a high vis vest for your trouble. If they are lucky they may be involved in a fire drill occasionally (if they remember they are a marshal). I want them to be more involved so I have planned additional training such as scenario training, Site specific training, Marshal forum every six months where we all meet up and discuss work related issues, Talk about any interesting recent fire issues in general and LFB Promotions that sort of thing. And as mentioned the practical training. Want them to feel more involved, to be interested in fire therefore more proactive and competent in their role.
Red dwarf. I love that look. It has been suggested that managers should be responsible for filling the role but they have proved more committed to gurning than fire safety.
Messy. This is where I am at the moment. I am in the process of getting new policy and procedures finalised which includes a reporting structure that deals with outstanding fire related issues and allows it to be reported up the management chain. The senior person(RP) will be briefed and the outcome will be managers are strongly requested to identify people for the role to allow compliance. What it will result in is people feeling like they have been forced into the role. I will have to bring a nice bit of cake to that training session to stop me getting lynched. I’m sure as soon as they are involved they will be pleasantly surprised at the changes and approach.
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