Applying for firefighter jobs with Vancouver Fire Rescue Services

A career with Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services is about more than putting out fires. We provide our members with ongoing education in the latest developments in firefighting, fire prevention, medical response, and search and rescue techniques. We are committed to our community through health clinics, fire and life safety education, and our specialized emergency response training facility. VFRS is a leader in terms of staff safety, physical and mental health, and wellness initiatives. 

Vancouver firefighters work on an eight day schedule with an average of 42 hours per week. The schedule includes two day shifts of 10 hours and two night shifts of 14 hours followed by four days off.

Standard training

We train to NFPA 1001 level standards in the following areas:

• Firefighting techniques
• Medical emergency procedures
• Public education service
• Control of hazardous materials
• Communication systems
• Fire prevention legislation
• Forensic fire investigation techniques

Specialty teams and programs

Our members also serve on teams that specialize in:

• Automobile extrication
• Rapid intervention
• Hazardous Materials response
• Technical rescue (structural collapse, rope, trench and confined space rescue)
• Heavy urban search and rescue (CAN-TF1)
• Marine emergency response
• Wildlands firefighting
• Fire investigations
• Fire prevention
• Emergency medical services
• Rescue task force (mass causality incidents)
• Public safety unit (deployed during mass gatherings and protests. Consisting of specially trained firefighters, tactical medics, and device extraction technicians)
• Public education (fire and life safety)
• Emergency management
• Communications

Many Vancouver Fire Rescue Services staff enjoy long careers spanning several decades.

The annual firefighter salary as of 2019 is $69,204 (first 6 months) progressing to $98,868 (start of 4th year) continuing to $104,796 (start of 15th year).

Firefighters receive standard City of Vancouver extended health medical and dental benefits. Standard contributions to Employment Insurance and Canada Pension Plan are additional.

Firefighters are covered by the Municipal Superannuation Act which provides them with a pension at retirement. They contribute approximately 8% of their monthly salary and this amount is matched by the employer.

Safety standards

We are serious about safety, and our track record proves it. There have not been any line of duty fire deaths within Vancouver Fire Rescue Services since 1979. We have taken a prominent role in the City's neighbourhood emergency preparedness strategy, and have contributed towards a number of initiatives to help reduce Vancouver’s level of fire risk as compared to other North American cities.

Advances in fire prevention

We proactively update and enforce bylaws to improve fire safety, for instance:

• The requirement for automatic sprinklers to be installed in new construction.
• Annual inspections of fire safety and protection system equipment.
• Other programs to protect the public.

As a result, the number of serious fires in Vancouver has declined, and the annual fire death rate is second to none, even though our population has grown.

Specialized equipment

Each Vancouver fire hall is equipped with a thermal imaging camera, which helps us to locate hard-to-find overheated electrical devices, people who have collapsed in fires in need of rescue, and hot spots in smoke-filled environments.

Vancouver has developed a $52 million Dedicated Fire Protection System that taps into our ocean salt water supply, to provide a critical secondary source of water in the event a major disaster should disable our conventional water supply.