WASHINGTON, D.C.—Our federal firefighters are an integral part of our agency and, as such, we must acknowledge that part of this workforce is at-risk: federal firefighters are leaving for other agencies or career endeavors. Due to wage disparities with states and other organizations, we have seen key highly trained personnel leave the Forest Service and we have also experienced some inability to recruit new employees into the agency. We must address this issue immediately, and we are proud to do so this year with the support of President Biden, Secretary Vilsack and Chief Moore.

As of pay period 16, firefighters and fire employees will receive incentive awards to help them reach the equivalent pay of $15 per hour. This is just one small step to fairly compensate our fire personnel. We know there is more we need to do in the long term around pay, benefits, title, job series, and mental health and well-being.

We will continue to work toward these other important goals, but they take more time and help from other parts of the federal government. These incentive awards are an immediate step we can take to ensure you are paid fairly.

Incentive awards will come this summer in the following ways:

• Temporary (1039) seasonal fire employees GS-9 and below and WG-8 and below: Temporary (1039) primary/secondary-covered positions for wildland firefighting, GS-9 and below and WG-8 and below, will receive an achievement cash award of $1,300 (resulting in an after-tax amount of $1000).
• Permanent full-time and permanent seasonal fire employees GS-9 and below and WG-8 and below: Permanent full-time and permanent seasonal primary/secondary-covered positions for wildland firefighting, GS-9 and below and WG-8 and below, will receive an achievement cash award equivalent to 10% of their base salaries for 1,040 hours (based on step 5 of grade and the locality pay for the “rest of the United States”).
• All GS-3 employees earning a basic rate of less than $15 per hour: Permanent and seasonal GS-3 employees who earn a basic rate of pay of less than $15 per hour will receive additional compensation in their achievement cash awards equal to or more than the difference between their current rate and $15 per hour for a tour of 1,040 hours, regardless of actual tour. This has been calculated to be an additional $1,612.

These awards should arrive in paychecks on your normal pay day for pay period 16, on or about Aug. 23. You can find a list of FAQs on the HRM website (internal link). If you have issues with your paycheck that pay period or you feel you have not been compensated per the description above, you should work with your supervisory chain of command to reconcile the matter. Supervisors who need support with pay issues can contact Lisa Renken, Washington Office Fire and Aviation Management.

Since January 2020, we have endured long and drought-riddled fire seasons resulting in significant and unfortunate loss to our communities, greatly accentuated by the unknowns of COVID-19, international support to Australia and the staffing of vaccination centers. We know this has been incredibly difficult, and we thank you for all you do.

You are valued, and we hope we can gain your trust as we move forward to make long-lasting changes.