The career staff in a combination fire department staff a station or unit because the volunteers in that station are unable to respond at some or all the hours in a day (volunteer firefighters have traditional jobs/careers that would prevent them from leaving work and responding to every call while working regular business hours).
Furthermore, the volunteer organization may not have the manpower to cover all calls, and the career staff augments them to provide minimal staffing for preexisting jurisdictional requirements.
Actual volunteer firefighters are few, as it is economically unfeasible for fire personnel to be compensated for the time required for requisite training and for the personal costs of responding to dispatched calls.
Part paid or paid on-call refers to the fact that some volunteer firefighters are only partly compensated, and their stipend or pay often does not fully cover the costs associated with being a firefighter, including lost wages from their primary occupation for response to dispatches and training.
In addition, many part paid or paid on-call firefighters with combination departments still volunteer or are unpaid for part or all of the time they spend on training, administrative tasks, equipment maintenance, public education, and fundraising and often cover the cost of supplemental training from their own pockets.
Some combination departments use Nextel cell phones and alpha pagers with priority service contracts to send information to volunteer firefighters.
This can create a highly complex work environment, as full-time fire personnel typically are unionized employees under contract and volunteers rarely are.
Other issues can stem from inequities or resentment caused by bargained-for benefits career firefighters receive under contract, including training wages, shorter gear rotations, clothing allowances, and overtime pay.
Insurance Services Office (ISO) fire suppression ratings are independent of whether a department is full-time, combination, or volunteer.