The videos were slick productions, involving many people. Modeled on a popular TV commercial, they showed firefighters wearing department T-shirts and bunker gear, using language and actions that degraded women on the job as well as members of smaller neighboring departments. Made as a joke for a Christmas party, the videos ended up on YouTube, and led to an investigation and discipline of department members.
The e-mail had been circulating around the department for more than a month. Although framed as a joke, its contents were clearly derogatory to racial and ethnic groups. One after another firefighter simply passed it on, until finally someone from outside the department saw it and complained. Then the press got involved, and the department was discredited with the public as well as its own minority firefighters.
Stories like these are all too common, and these are only the ones that make it to the national news. By then, the damage is done, relationships may be beyond repair, and the entire organization is distracted from its essential mission by the actions of a few.
What if one person along the chain had said no?
What if just one person who was part of the group making those videos stood up and said that they were inappropriate and should not go forward? What if one person had hit “Reply All,” not to share the joke, but to stop it? Can one person really make a difference?
Taking a stand to stop clearly inappropriate behavior does not mean that you can never have fun in the station anymore. It has always been a vital part of the job and is one of the things that makes our career so special, creating bonds within the firehouse. When humor is intended to be inclusive, and everyone knows they have the right to speak up if something crosses the line, the station atmosphere will be more relaxed, productive and safe for everyone.
Firefighting is a culture of the team, and separating oneself from the group for any reason may seem either too risky or futile. Many firefighters feel they have no power to stop inappropriate behavior among their peers, and so they stay silent in the face of it, thus giving tacit approval. But individuals actually have tremendous influence in such situations, regardless of position. Consider the following options:
- At the very least, if someone tells an inappropriate joke, don’t laugh. Stone cold silence is very powerful in such circumstances. You don’t have to say a word to indicate how you feel.
- As a company officer, have some stock phrases in mind for when things start to out of control. You might want to use the parental, “All right, that’s enough.” Simply saying, “I don’t like that” or “I don’t want to hear that” clearly gets the message across.
- Redirect attention or activity. If a group of firefighters is engaging in “can you top this” kinds of behavior, it might be time to start a station maintenance project or get out in the district to study streets.
- Ask the crew how you would all feel if what you were doing or saying ended up on the evening news. Could you justify your actions or words? How about if one of the firefighter’s school-aged children walked in at the peak of the activity? How would that make everyone feel?
- Hold people accountable for their words and actions. If someone says something inappropriate, you don’t have to just let it slide. Ask the person to repeat what was said, and ask what was meant by the statement. In many cases, just this level of accountability will make the person reconsider.
- Remember — e-mail is forever, and everything you do on your employer’s computer belongs to your employer.
- Lead by example. If you as the officer refuse to engage in or support unprofessional behavior, your crew will follow your lead.
Whenever you see one of those stories in the news about firefighters behaving badly, you can be sure the bad outcome was not the result of the actions of one single person. Others were there — helping to make the videos, laughing at the jokes, passing the e-mails along, or just standing by silently while it all happens.
If just one person stands up in the chain of events and says, “I don’t like that, let’s do something else,” who knows how many of these personal and public relations nightmares could be avoided?
