Sudbury prepares for annual firefighter recruitment

Greater Sudbury faces a volunteer firefighter shortage. The city and union are collaborating on recruitment, tackling high 20% turnover and geographic hurdles.

When it comes to volunteer firefighters in Sudbury, many come forward, but few are chosen.

A report that will be presented March 10 will show that 229 people applied to join the city’s ranks of volunteer firefighters in the last year, but only 28 remained after the physical assessment and interview process.

Recruits also have to live within a catchment area of where they are volunteering, thinning the numbers further.

“Volunteer firefighting, especially recruitment (and) retention has changed over the years,” said deputy fire chief Nathan Melin.

“A lot of times, you lived within your community and you would serve your community. Now that there are a lot of people commuting, they don’t necessarily work in the community they live in.”

Matthew Walchuk is with the Christian Labour Association of Canada, which represents more than 200 volunteer firefighters in Greater Sudbury.

High turnover rates

Walchuk said they would like to have around 300 volunteer firefighters to best serve the city’s vast geography. But they are struggling to keep the ones they have, with about 20 per cent leaving each year.

“That’s a lot of turnover,” he said.

“But it’s often the newer folks that might leave for various … reasons. And then having to replace (them) is very expensive … and everyone else that’s left behind, of course, has to carry the load because the emergencies and incidents still happen.”

Walchuk said CLAC and the city have been working together to improve recruitment and retention.

He is hopeful that, between open houses and presentations planned at area high schools, more people will seriously consider becoming a volunteer firefighter.

Josh Corbett, better known as half of the Pure Country Morning Show, has been a volunteer firefighter since 2023.

“I think if you ask anyone in the service, it comes down to wanting to give back, wanting to help others, but do so in a way that’s very frontline boots on the ground,” Corbett said.

“You’re able to put the work in rather than be more behind the scenes. If you’re someone who wants to be right on that frontline, heavily involved in giving back, it’s a great opportunity to do it.”

To learn more about becoming a volunteer firefighter in the city, click here.