photo by Boyd Loving
February 18, 2021
Dear members of the Village Council,
Last night we learned of a plan to disband the Ridgewood per diem EMS program, a program which has served the Village for over 30 years, via Chief Van Goor’s budget proposal to the Council. This decision appears to be not just a budgetary measure, but a retaliatory attack against Ridgewood Emergency Services and its EMTs. We feel you should be fully informed of this matter, as this is not a decision which should be taken lightly. We want to make it very clear:
we are not a failing department. We are being purposely dismantled for the benefit of the Ridgewood Fire Department at the cost of caring for the residents of Ridgewood.
In May of 2020, a decision was made to have the EMTs of Ridgewood Emergency Services
respond from Ridgewood Fire headquarters to provide “oversight” after an issue where our only employee for the day suffered a medical emergency. This decision to change where we worked hurt our ability to do our jobs and serve the Village. We were no longer able to answer phones, accept deliveries of medical supplies, or perform our duties to a department which has no full time operational, administrative, or support staff. From the beginning of this change, we were treated with disrespect by Chief Van Goor of the Ridgewood Fire Department and his administration. Our treatment was unfair, and it seemed to be in an attempt to make us resign. Complaints were made to Village management, which went unanswered, as harassment continued to increase. This continued behavior led to our eventual decision to unionize and be represented by the United Public Service Employees Union in an attempt to stop the harassment we suffered.
Recently, Chief Van Goor decided to change how our shifts were scheduled. None of us
felt that we could be scheduled fairly by Chief Van Goor or his appointees. A schedule for February was provided based on past practice, which he rejected, instead bringing in full time career firefighters. We have been informed that they have had firefighters in on overtime throughout the month to cover these shifts at a much higher cost. Now we are learning that after the Village was notified of our unionization, our positions are being eliminated.
The budget meeting last night highlighted that Village Manager Mailander appears to be
misinformed on how staffing of emergency vehicles within the Village must occur. We cannot continue to roll the dice with Ridgewood residents’ lives and hope that we do not have multiple medicals or fire calls at the same time. We cannot have personnel assigned to two vehicles at a time. We have already been leaving fire apparatus at dangerously low staffing levels, with fire apparatus going to calls with only a driver, or recently, not at all. Chief Van Goor states that the Village currently has an Insurance Standards Organization Class 2 rating and that he hopes to increase staffing to raise that to a Class 1 level, however staffing ambulances instead of fire apparatus could instead negatively affect the Village’s ISO rating.
This decision unfortunately does not come as a surprise. Out of the four municipalities in
Bergen County which have paid career fire departments, Ridgewood is the highest paid with the lowest call volume. In addition, Englewood, Hackensack, and Teaneck all have hospitals which
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will be remaining in their communities for the foreseeable future to justify their existence. As it is, the Ridgewood Fire Department has already been responding to types of calls which responses are not necessary, including EMS responses, in what appears to be an attempt to justify their high budget costs by increasing their reported call volume. Chief Van Goor stated during the budget meeting that their department was responding to additional medicals, when in fact, medical calls have decreased over several years – the Ridgewood Fire Department chose to respond to more calls with no appreciable benefit. If firefighters are to be committed to the ambulance, this makes them the highest paid EMTs within the state of New Jersey.
Ask the firefighters of Ridgewood. They were hired as firefighters under the presumption that they would be responding to fires, not medical calls. Handling these extra calls have left ambulances or fire apparatus short staffed at times and does not coincide with the Chief’s report that the changes have been “going well”, as he stated during the meeting.
Ask the Paramedics from the area hospitals who respond to advanced medical emergencies within the Village regarding the standards of care given to our patients by the Ridgewood Fire Department EMTs compared to the EMTs of Ridgewood Emergency Services.
Ask the other first responders within the Village about the level of service provided by our EMTs and our willingness to provide competent, compassionate care.
Ask other municipalities why the fire-based EMS model did not work. This is not new – Hackensack Fire Department and Englewood Fire Department have both tried to run EMS in the past before abandoning the service due to increasing costs.
While Chief Van Goor states that hiring more firefighters will be more cost effective in their first years, these are positions which have salaries and benefits which increase to over $100,000 a year for each firefighter hired – more than our entire per diem staff and Emergency Services Chief’s salaries combined, and a third of our department’s entire budget.
Ridgewood Emergency Services’ EMTs have served the Village faithfully throughout the years, and more recently through a global pandemic. We have worked tirelessly to ensure the safety of the residents of Ridgewood, and we believe that what is being proposed is not only reckless and dangerous, but it will not be cost effective. We call upon you to investigate this matter further, to speak with us, and allow us to show you the data on how this will not work. We call for our unfair treatment to be addressed. We encourage you to do your own research on the subject, confident that you will come to the same conclusions we have. Unfortunately, due to her son being a full time, salaried firefighter of the Ridgewood Fire Department, we do not feel that Mayor Knudsen can be impartial on these issues, and we call for her to recuse herself regarding these matters. We look forward to meeting with you all, and genuinely hope that we can continue to serve the Village.
Respectfully,
Emergency Medical Technicians, Ridgewood Emergency Services
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When an per Diem EMT fails to respond to an ambulance request not once, not twice but three times because he fell asleep and the management of emergency services not only does nothing about this obvious problem but they tried to defend it. Let’s keep the volunteers and do away with the per Diem EMTS. Ambulance response should not be delayed when it is requested. The Fire Department is uniquely qualified to provide this important service.
Quoted from the letter above…..
“Ask the firefighters of Ridgewood. They were hired as firefighters under the presumption that they would be responding to fires, not medical calls….”
That statement is false. I am a Ridgewood firefighter and I knew from day 1 that providing medical services to the residents of Ridgewood would be an important part of my duties, which I am proud to do and be a part of!
The Ridgewood Fire Department clearly has too much free time not fighting fires! There isn’t a foundation that they haven’t saved!
Power grab by Chief Van Goor and FD. Why don’t they do it at night also? This is just for the daytime. The FD does not do medical calls after supper time. What’s up with that?
Why do I think this is a bad idea…?
TYFYS!
A lot of crying by the Per Diem EMTs going on here. I wonder why they need to be paid in the first place, didn’t they volunteer to be EMTs. Maybe they realized they could turn their volunteerism into a cash cow and now they are about to lose that cash cow.
I find it interesting on how this letter picks and chooses to disclose certain facts. On THREE different occasions three separate EMT’s were asleep and did not respond to their calls. It was only after trouble started brewing that a ‘medical emergency’ was claimed for one of these calls. The expectation when going to work in EMS is to answer the call when there is one. There is a lot of down time in between calls but when a call comes in you have to respond. Because some of the paid personnel could not stay awake during their day shift they not were told they had to respond from the fire house. If you are a paid employee, your employer has the right to tell you what to do. Throwing a temper tantrum because you don’t like what you are being asked to do. Any other employer would have fired you on the spot for not doing your job.
This letter distorts the truth. It is my understanding that the 12 EMTs banded together and did not provide availability for February leaving the fire department to cover these shifts. Don’t speak for the paramedics for the local hospitals. Having worked with the fire department EMTs their standards of care are excellent. This is an unfortunate situation but had you just come in and do your job you wouldn’t be having this problem.
Having firefighters take over the work of the Emergency Services group is a great idea. Members of the RFD are trained to be EMTs. If there’s a fire and it’s discovered that someone is injured it’s just common sense to have the RFD EMTs provide medical help rather than calling, and then waiting for the EMS people to show up. Ditto for car accidents. This is a classic example of unnecessary duplicate services. This is good for the village from a safety standpoint, a budget standpoint, and a common sense standpoint. No need to have 2 groups doing the same work.
First year EMTs have an average salary of about $75K. Not bad.
Per diem EMTs have existed for 30 years, this is nothing new. Problems with one employee were exploited by the fire chief, when he was getting fired anyway! Obviously Ridgewood Fire has nothing better to do today than comment on the blog, make sure they save their jobs as they rape the wallets of every Ridgewood taxpayer.
Didn’t we tell you there’s going to be more, some thought it was all over with the garage. No, no, no, Fortlee Partman, EMTs, the library, the garage, don’t you worry more to come. Rome is burning
There’s So much more going on than we know it. As a long time volunteer in town I seen it all. How about in the past they used full-time paid for so much more going on than we know it. As a long time volunteer in town I seen it all. How about in the past they used full-time paid fire Dept employees to go out and clean catch basins in a rain storm. And they never called the crew of Dept of Public works to come out.
I see the Per Diem EMTs have taken to the blog to try to cause a munity in the Village. Not going to work boys and Girls, This tactic is only going to backfire and seal the fate of the Per Diem Program. Whoever advised doing this is a fool.
REB Then why don’t FD do it during the night.They just want during the day. Half Ass.
Its clear here that the firefighters are being lied to just as much as the townsfolk if they think what they are posting is true. Either that or they are just running scared for their jobs. Why wouldn’t we ask paramedics or anyone else, the more info the better. Unless they don’t want the full picture out there. Looks like more reduced Village services.
“When an per Diem EMT fails to respond to an ambulance request not once, not twice but three times because he fell asleep ” Then fire the employee don’t get rid of the whole program.
We know the fire department is very political connected. We see the fire chief schmoozing shoulder to shoulder with these people.
Can we have a latest with numbers regarding fire calls
& EMT calls
And we do understand the times you need both.
And we do know that some other local towns they also have problems getting volunteers for the EMT department. In this day and age I’m sure every town can afford to have some kind of paid EMTs to house the ambulance corps.
The mayor and council, and top management have their hands full .
1″”””” parking garage
2″”””” Library
3””””” parkland, a.k.a. pickle ball
4”””””rice. Notices
5””””” fire department
6””””” emergency services, EMTs
7””””” paid stipends for employees.
8””””?????? We are sure there is more.
From a purely financial standpoint (and yes, I am aware some might not consider this aspect important), you should have a really good reason if planning to convert a variable cost into a long term fixed cost.
‘REB Then why don’t FD do it during the night.They just want during the day. Half Ass. ‘
It’s not half assed. The paid EMTs are from 0600-1900. The village volunteers answer the calls when the paid EMT is done. That is the way it has always been.
‘“When an per Diem EMT fails to respond to an ambulance request not once, not twice but three times because he fell asleep ” Then fire the employee don’t get rid of the whole program.’
You’re right! Hire people who will answer the calls and not sleep on the taxpayers dime.
Emergency Services is only telling the version they want everyone to know so the village townspeople will feel sorry for them. Making the fire department look bad is not right when ES did this to themselves. They are just trying to make sure an ambulance shows up when someone calls 911.
What Moron is running the Emergency Services Department? Whoever that is, if they think airing their dirty laundry on this blog is a good thing they should be FIRED, immediately.
We have already been leaving fire apparatus at dangerously low staffing levels, with fire apparatus going to calls with only a driver, or recently, not at all.
Driverless fire trucks??
“after the Village was notified of our unionization, our positions are being eliminated. ”
“positions which have salaries and benefits which increase to over $100,000 a year for each firefighter hire”
Increased legal/settlement fees for union busting + full time salaries for 25+ years = higher taxes for village residents
As they say in Baseball, three strikes and your out. Obviously the paid EMTs have only themselves to blame for this situation.
Any delay in dispatching an ambulance can mean the difference in life and death. Go ahead and argue that with me……you can’t I bet.
Not sleep on the job! Hah. Look at the FD with their scheduled sleepy time. Village pays to make sure they get their full 8 hours of sleep a night, wouldn’t want to interrupt them with calls!
Chief Van goor is a power monkey fueled by the bananas of Next in line Chief Captain Judge. That fucking idiot was an EMT for the village for years until her starting making $175k a year to be in cuckhold of a relationship and have no life but fucking over his firefighters and the emts of ridgewood so he can have power. Cant wait for them to crash another truck trying to steal calls in other towns or give an epi pen to the chest of a Dead person thinking it will save them, or not put out any fire but knock the building into the ground and call it a day. Disgrace of people, suck at their jobs, and the village wants to fuck over and keep shit quite so Susans boys can make money, susans parents home can keep its value and Heather can keep her income so she doesnt forclose. I hope they all get sued…
This should never have been brought up on a blog. Obviously the paid EMTs are throwing a temper tantrum. Based on what I have read here they were NOT following the rules and apparently thought the rules should not apply to them. Fire them all , now. I will gladly pay for more professional fire fighters than have this embarrassing foolishness tarnish the Village, our Village Management and our Fire fighters.
Pissed off Taxpayer,
You obviously are a member of the paid EMT program. You should be fired. If you are representative of what the Village Paid EMTs are, The Village should fire each and and every one of you. Your vile, profane comment above demonstrates your juvenile thinking and lack of intelligence. YOU are a disgrace!
Better to be pissed off than pissed on
“You see that flash of light in the corner of your eye? That’s your career dissipation light. It just went into high gear.”
When there are three separate instances of EMT’s sleeping on the job, that is more than a problem with individual employees solved by firing them. That is a management problem. Who feels secure with their or their loved ones’ lives in the hands of a dysfunctional system? Who’s ready to be the one waiting for help while whoever is on call sleeps? Something clearly has to change. Instead of flinging innuendo at each other, let’s see how best to solve this problem.
I actually think “Pissed off taxpayer” might be a firefighter… there are many internal conflicts there right now too. The system over there is broken
Way too much dirty shit going on in village. That’s why people when people screw with your get an attorney.Do not trust them at all. We were told us many years ago
Sorry that Ridgewood EMS’s social circle is getting taken away. If you have any common sense or study any successful, top tier fire rescue organizations, you will see why it makes sense to combine the two. RFD does literally nothing anyway besides medicals and is wasting taxpayer money. They show up to a fire call with a single driver. If anything, RFD should go volunteer..
At the time the EMTs slept through their calls they were not under the FD. Emergency Services has their own Chief who did nothing about the situation. It wasn’t until then the FD got involved for this problem was put upon them.
Boy or boy that sounds like New York City 25 years ago. Ever since 911, the Police Department, fire department, EMTs, all have a very good Respect with each other, well definitely better than it was.
Thanks for the humor all!! Love to see everyone arguing over a blog. Get over it all but 2 EMTs need to be fired.
Wow “pissed off taxpayer” because every mother dreams of having her children run toward danger for a living. And really, you’re going to crap all over our firefighters? You need to get over your petty personal issues. This isn’t about you.
Rome is burning . What is the total budget of the fire department. What is the total budget of emergency services. And how much to both departments get from the federal government.
Folks most of the money towns get from the federal government has been spent already ,a lot of you are go in NY to be disappointed
I don’t know Emergency Services budget, it was in the “other” category of the budget salaries, but Ridgewood Fire costs 5.5 million a year
From what we see from the outside, the mayor and council, and all the top brass I’ll sleeping in the same bed. We don’t trust you you’re lawyers and get dirty politics anymore. Do you think we are stupid we see what’s going on. There’s a lot of dirty shit going on in town. Just look across the board with lack of experience my fellow taxpayers they don’t want experience anymore they want full control they love puppets. If you’re a good Yes man or woman. They love you. Because if you have experience and knowledge you are a threat. And don’t tell us any different. What a shame the village is going down. It’s embarrassing. What happened a few years ago this wasn’t like this. The village at one time used to be the leader no more , Now they are followers.
The Fire Department cost 5.5 Million per year! Wow, I had no idea, That’s a bargain.
Lets get the facts and present them to the entire Village. I think this is a pure fiscal move. Lets see the numbers and go from there. Ridgewood does not need anymore taxes!!
lots of back and forth… on this blog… with no actual proof at all. Lets get the real facts starting with pay and benefits. We are lucky to have a great fire dept and police dept and EMT dept. Just who do you think serviced ALL of the Covid calls?? They ALL did. This system works hand and hand and speaking with many people in Ridgewood, not one person wants any part of any service dismantled! Some truths I do know The EMT has some paid PART time employees and 30 unpaid Volunteers. This dept is paid by insurance companies by calls done and of the money goes to the Village. The EMT COSTS ONLY 70000 a year , yep for ALL of the employees. The EMT co ordinates a huge volunteer presence with RHS students, the July 4th events, Memorial Run and more. They are just as important as the other fine departments. The FIRE DEPT does an EXCELLENT job and deserves to be paid. I feel we should KEEP all the services the same, with no new hires. Get the REAL facts, then decide what is BEST for the town.
We have no proof that EMTS were sleeping nor bad behavior with the Fire Dept. This is a fiscal matter pure and simple . WE need the facts. Here are a few. The EMT has some paid part time employees and 30 unpaid volunteers. They get paid through calls made and insurance pays the Village. The EMT expenses are 70000 a YEAR for the ENTIRE dept. The Fire Dept is also EXCELLENT and deserves to get paid. The police, fire and MANY residents WANT to KEEP the EMT as is and not change it.. why??
They work hand and hand.. during Covid, THEY all were OUT every day, and many EMTS worked with ZERO pay. During big fires, the Fire Dept does a great job, as they should. Just who do you think is helping a broken bone, a person who fainted, a drug overdose.. the EMT!! It is reckless to disband the EMT who have such a deep commitment to community with RHS students, and helping at every major event, in the Village, again many with no pay. We need solid fact before DISBANDING any service dept which every other town has!! I pay taxes, as we all do for FULL serice,, not LESS service. WE NEED ANSWERS
susan smith,
The Fact is with 30 Volunteer EMTs we do NOT need the paid part time employees. The Fire Department EMTs can easily handle the daytime calls and they are uniquely qualified to do it. The Fire Department has been responding to Medical Emergency calls for over 30+ years with no issues. The obvious lack of management of the paid part time EMT employees lead to medical emergencies not being responded to in a timely manner. The reason for this doesn’t matter, but the fact that it occurred multiple times demanded something be done. Hiring two additional Firefighters to replace the paid part time employees to insure an ambulance response is done as soon as a request for assistance is made makes perfect sense. You claim this is a fiscal matter, Sorry this is a matter of life or death. Trying to make it a “fiscal” matter is just a red herring.
susan smith
What department are you saying is bein disbanded? As far as I know only the small number of paid EMTs are being let go, not the EMT Volunteers.
OK you’re saying $5.5 million for the fire department, what about an overtime budget.
How much is the overtime budget and emergency services. EMTs.
Would love to know what the budget is at all volunteer department like fair lawn. A town that has more square miles more people and more businesses just curious. Yes the can of worms is opening.