Milton firefighters will soon become one of a handful departments nationwide to adopt a 1-3; 2-3 schedule – a change meant to improve members’ quality of life and make our City’s Fire department an even more desirable place to work.

Under this model, firefighters will work 1 full day (24 hours), have 3 days (72 hours) off, then work 2 days (48 hours), before having another 3-day (72-hour) break. This contrasts to the approach used by most Fire departments, of 24 hours working, followed by 48 hours off, then the cycle repeats.

Why is Milton moving to this new scheduling model? Advantages include:

• More extended time with their friends and family, for second jobs, to attend school, etc. – with the same pay or more, considering there will be more opportunities to pick up overtime shifts with the non-traditional gaps
• Better physical and mental health, with less burnout and fatigue as well as more recovery time (whether it’s from a physically demanding shift or one with high-stress calls)
• Better work-life balance, given a higher likelihood of having off full weekends, holidays, or opportunities to attend family events and activities
• Enhanced continuity at work with fewer shift handoffs and improved communications

So, for example, this works out to 11 times a year when a firefighter would have Friday, Saturday, and Sunday off – compared to 0 times a year (without having to take paid time off) with the current approach. They’d also have 41 more mornings home and 39 fewer commuting trips to the fire station annually.

Portland Fire & Rescue in Oregon first adopted this new scheduling approach in March 2022; a few others have followed suit since then. When it takes effect in October, Milton will be the only department in North Fulton and one of several in Georgia using it. The hope is that the 1-3; 2-3 scheduling combined with competitive pay and benefits will draw more top-notch firefighters to Milton and improve retention (which is valuable financially for the City).

“Milton Fire-Rescue is a department that values our firefighters’ health, their work-life balance, and putting them in the best possible position to thrive on and off the job,” said Deputy Fire Chief Richard Bushman. “This new innovative scheduling approach helps in all those respects, while also serving the best interests of our department and the City as a whole.”