Join Our Team
Hiring the best and brightest. Do you have what it takes?
The fire service is an honorable profession that requires integrity, selflessness, sacrifice, courage, discipline, and commitment to the greater good. The City of Beaumont’s Fire Department is grounded in the honorable traditions of the fire service, while being committed to continuous improvement and progress. Our goal is to recruit and hire qualified applicants who reflect the diversity of our community and who model servant leadership. Review the information below to learn more about our minimum standards, hiring process, and exceptional salary and benefit package.
Suppression works a 24 hr on, 48 hr off work rotation with a Kelly day (paid day off every third week of the rotation).
Current Openings:
- All positions are posted by the City HR department.
- Applications are only accepted when job openings are available.
- Postings for probationary firefighter/EMT positions occur when vacancies need filling.
To be eligible for hire, applicants must:
- Be certified as a firefighter as prescribed by Texas Commission on Fire Protection standards
- Be certified as an EMT-basic as prescribed by the Texas Department of State Health Services rules
- Have submitted a completed Applicant Screening Packet
- Have successfully passed the following:
- Written entrance examination
- Background investigation
- Job-related physical abilities test
- Oral board interview
- Polygraph examination
- Interview with the fire chief
- Fitness-for-duty medical examination, including drug screening
- Not be past his/her 36th birthday by the date of hire
- Be able to obtain a Class B driver’s license within three months of hire
To sit for the written entrance examination, applicants must:
- Be certified or certifiable as a firefighter as prescribed by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection standards
- Be certified or certifiable as an EMT-basic as prescribed by the Texas Department of State Health Services
- Be a citizen of the United States
- Possess a high school diploma or equivalent
- Be able to read and write English
- Be at least 18 years old
Certifiable means that the applicant has documentation to show successful completion of both a fire and EMS academy and has passed one or both of the state certification examinations.
Salary & Benefits
Salary
- Starting salary: $5,475 per month, paid biweekly; $6,179 after one year of service
- Automatic step increases: for Grade I Firefighter/EMT at 3, 5, 7, 10, 15 and 20 years
- Longevity: $4 per month for each full year of service, up to $100 per month
- Assignment: $250 per month for staff officer shift assignments
Incentive Pay
Texas Commission on Fire Protection:
- Intermediate firefighter, $60 per month
- Advanced firefighter, $100 per month
- Master firefighter, $150 per month
Texas Department of State Health Services, combined with Beaumont EMS credentialing
- EMT- intermediate – $75 per month
- EMT- paramedic – $100 per month
Special Operations Response Teams
- Hazardous Materials Response Team $60/ month
- Water Response & Recovery Team $60/ month
- Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus Team $60/ month
- Wildland Urban Interface Response Team $60/ month
Education
- Bachelor’s $200/month
- Master’s $250/month
- Translator Certified $50/Month
Personal Protective Equipment & Uniforms
- PPE: Bunker coat and pants, suspenders, hood, helmet, boots, gloves, and gear bag furnished
- Uniforms: Annual uniform allotment provided
- Uniform Maintenance: $35 per month
- Additional approved PPE and uniform items available through the department’s company store
Insurance
- Medical: Employee-only premium is 100% paid, reasonable rates for dependent coverage
- Dental: Pays 100% for preventative care, dependent coverage available
- Life: No cost for coverage equal to the employee’s annual base wage, maximum $50,000; additional coverage available
Leave
- Vacation: 15 days of vacation per year for one to 14 years of service; additional vacation days after 15 years of service, up to six additional days
- Holidays: 11 holidays per year; paid time-and-a-half when actually working on a holiday
- Personal Leave: one per year after 10 years of service and two per year after 20 years of service
- Sick Leave: one-and-a-quarter days per month, 15 days per year max
Promotion & Job Enrichment Opportunities
- Eligible for promotional testing after two years
- Promotion lists are developed by competitive civil service testing
- Uniformed positions at various ranks available in Operations, Logistics, and Planning sections
- View Our Organizational Structure
Retirement
- Texas Local Firefighter Relief and Retirement Act defined benefit pension plan
- Vested with 20 years of service; may draw regular service retirement benefit at age 55; early retirement and DROP options available
- Employee contribution is 18% of salary, city contribution is 20% (no participation in Social Security retirement)
- Optional 457 defined contribution plan and Roth IRAs also available through ICMA
Hiring Process
Written Exam
- Eligible applicants will be invited to take the written general knowledge examination.
- A minimum score of 70 percent is required to continue in the hiring process.
Applicant Screening Packet
- Applicants who pass the written exam will be issued an ASP.
- Complete the packet fully and accurately.
- Submit your completed ASP to City of Beaumont Human Resources before the stated deadline.
- Remember to include copies of all required supporting documentation.
Oral Board Interview
- Applicants who successfully pass the physical abilities test are invited to an oral board interview.
- The interview panel is made up of five BFR members from various ranks.
- Standard question sets are used for all applicants and rated using a standard scale.
- The interview is designed to assess general job knowledge, judgement, and targeted character attributes.
Polygraph Examination
- As positions become available, applicants who pass the oral board interview will be invited to take a polygraph exam.
- The polygraph exam is administered to verify the integrity, honesty, and moral character of the applicant.
Background Investigation
- Investigators begin processing criminal and driving history after the ASP is received.
- If the investigation identifies any standard process disqualifiers, then the applicant will no longer be considered.
Job-related Physical Abilities Test
- Applicants who submit a complete and timely ASP are invited to attempt a job-related physical abilities test.
Additional Hiring Credits
- If the required documentation was submitted with the application or ASP, applicants who pass the oral board interview may be granted additional hiring credits for military service, higher education, and other certifications.
Interview with the Fire Chief
- Applicants who pass the polygraph exam will be invited to an interview with the fire chief.
- If the interview is successful, the fire chief may extend a conditional job offer, pending results of a medical fit-for-duty exam, including drug screening.
Medical Fitness-for-Duty Exam
- Medical physical exams follow National Fire Protection Association standards (NFPA 1582)
- Applicants who pass the medical fitness-for-duty exam and drug screening are eligible for hire.
Disqualifiers
Criminal History
- Having a conviction for, of being currently under indictment or charged with a felony offense
- Having a conviction for any Class A or B misdemeanor offense within the 36 months preceding the application
- Currently being on probation for any offense greater than a Class C misdemeanor
For the purpose of these requirements, an individual is convicted of an offense when adjudication of guilt on the offense is entered against him/her by a court of competent jurisdiction, or a plea of guilt is entered, including situations where:
- The sentence is subsequently probated and the person is discharged from probation
- Deferred adjudication is granted
- The person is pardoned for the offense, unless the pardon is expressly granted for subsequent proof of innocence
Driving History
- Having an excessive record of traffic convictions or negligent traffic collisions
- Not have two or more traffic violation convictions within the 12 months preceding the date of taking the written examination.
In this case excessive is defined as, during the three year period preceding the date of application:
- Convictions for more than three moving violations
- Driver’s license suspended for DWI or DUID; failure to carry liability insurance; any reason that would indicate poor driving behavior
- Having more than one at fault accident
- A series of negligent collisions that would indicate poor driving behavior or habits, whether or not citations were issued
Drug & Controlled Substance Use
- Having an extensive record of drug/controlled substance use
- Having illegally furnished any controlled substance or dangerous drug to another
In this case extensive is defined as illegal use of:
- Marijuana within one year preceding the date of application
- Any controlled substance or dangerous drugs (other than marijuana) within three years preceding the date of application
BFR History
- Having been terminated from Beaumont Fire-Rescue Services
- Having resigned from Beaumont Fire-Rescue Services for disciplinary reasons, resigning to avoid suspension or discharge, or having resigned during a professional standards investigation without final judgement being rendered
- Failing to cooperate with and keep all scheduled appointments with City of Beaumont or Beaumont Fire-Rescue Services staff involved in the hiring process
- Failing to submit information, updates, or changes by the required deadline date
- Refusal to submit to a polygraph exam
- Without being specifically enumerated in the above disqualifications, if circumstances exist that indicate the applicant is clearly unsuited for a career with Beaumont Fire-Rescue Services, the application will be rejected.
Indicators of Possible Character Deficiencies
- Making any deliberate false statement of fact, being deceptive by statement or omission in the employment application or Applicant Screening Packet, background investigation information or by any means in the hiring process
- Having been discharged from military service with other than an honorable discharge
- Having a history of failing to maintain financial responsibility (i.e. bankruptcy, debt delinquency, foreclosure, etc.) without reasonable extenuating circumstances
- Being a member of any organization that advocates or supports overthrow of government or other agency by force or violence
- Being a member of any organization that advocates illegal discrimination
- Dishonorable Discharge from the Armed Forces of the United States is automatic disqualifier.
Certification & Training Organizations
