Cost categories
- Recruiting and testing: written, physical ability (such as CPAT), interviews
- Pre-employment: background, medical and psychological evaluations
- Recruit academy: instructor time, facilities, salary during training
- EMS certification: EMT and paramedic education where the department pays
- Probation: officer and crew time spent developing the new firefighter
- Vacancy coverage: overtime and callback pay to maintain minimum staffing
- Gear: turnout gear and SCBA fitting, often sized to the individual
Estimating it
Expected departures equal headcount times turnover rate; multiply by a per-departure cost. If your department hasn't calculated its own figure, start from a benchmark and refine it.
Frontline's planning model uses national benchmarks: an 8% annual turnover rate, about $70,000 per departure, and a 2.7% retention improvement, plus Section 125 savings of about $1,230 per participating employee per year.
A department of 60 firefighters at 8% turnover can expect about 5 departures a year — roughly $336,000 a year at the benchmark, before counting lost experience.
See your department's numbers
Frontline's impact calculator estimates one-year and five-year retention value and Section 125 savings based on participation, using the benchmarks above.
Sources and further reading
See what retention is worth to your agency.
Frontline's impact calculator estimates one-year and five-year retention value and Section 125 savings based on participation.