CAL Fire reviews

3.8

67% would recommend to a friend

(207 total reviews)

Joe Tyler

85% approve of CEO

63% positive business outlook

CAL Fire has an employee rating of 3.8 out of 5 stars, based on 207 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The CAL Fire employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Government & Public Administration industry (3.6 stars).

Reviews by job title

207 reviews
1.0
Feb 27, 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

-Easy to meet the minimum qualifications and if you do meet them you will likely get hired -solid pay and health insurance -good 457b savings options

Cons

-Being forced on with no say or rights -not having a voice at any rank within the administration -terrible and unsafe fleet management (one of the engines will get someone killed due to poor maintenance at some point) -quick promotions means low experience at high ranking levels, this is not okay in a high risk profession like firefighting

4.0
Feb 16, 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Enjoyed the work that I got to do and was able to feel like I was making a difference in the wildfire problems in the state. Not very demanding outside of fire season.

Cons

Not very innovate. The common procedures and programs are more than likely out of date and never very efficient but no one wants to do anything to make things better. Old school people stuck in their old school ways

2.0
Sep 12, 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Co workers, fighting fire, helping people. Good experience and instills solid, hard working ethics.

Cons

Bureaucracy at it's finest, work schedule, forced OT, time away from family and friends, insufficient personnel, the lack of care about your personnel life from upper management and sacramento (HQ). Staffing patterns, being continuously in the dark about what is going on and how long you'll be held on. Supervisors are often held on for weeks, which can create a negative environment. When it comes to finding relief, you either find your own or get forced on. The unit does nothing to find relief. It's like pulling teeth to try and get off on your designated day off sometimes, the union doesnt allow us to strike! The department views FF1's as pawns and could care less about our time off, personal lives etc... but then of course gives us eap which is there for the after effect of what this department does to you ( "Sorry we held you on so long and dont care about your real life but heres some free counseling sessions to help you vent or some free lagal advice to assist in your divorce"). This could go on for a while...

Viewing 4 - 6 of 207 Reviews

Glassdoor has 236 CAL Fire reviews submitted anonymously by CAL Fire employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if CAL Fire is right for you.