Cutting Ambulance

Hoffman Estates reduces ambulance service to cut overtime cost.

The number of Hoffman Estates Fire Department ambulances operating daily dropped from four to three Tuesday, bringing service levels back to where they were more than four years ago.

To save $500,000 in overtime costs next year, the village board agreed Monday night to authorize the fire chief to determine service levels on a day-to-day basis. Fire Chief Robert Gorvett said this means the ambulance at Station 22, 1700 Moon Lake Blvd., will not operate when the department would have to pay overtime to staff it, which is the case for the forseeable future.

Dean Slater, president of the Hoffman Estates Professional Fire Fighters Association, Local 2061, said the union is opposed to the decision because “time is crucial” in responding to emergencies and ambulance 22 is one of the busiest in the Northwest suburbs.

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Promises

Most Stressful job

America's Most Stressful Jobs 2010

Friday, April 23, 2010

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With unemployment high, many people with jobs are grateful to get their weekly paychecks, but that feeling alone doesn't take the stress out of the daily grind.

More from CNBC.com:

• America's Most Stressful Jobs

• Paychecks: How Does the U.S. Stack Up?

• Hardest Cities to Find A Job

To get a sense of the most stressful jobs in America, CareerCast.com looked at 21 different factors that can cause stress on the job, and ranked 200 professions by how significantly these demands factor into the average workday. Factors that weighed into stress levels included work environment, job competitiveness, opportunity for advancement and even perceived risk of unemployment.

CareerCast has also included a range of unemployment each profession faces around the country, a number which contributes to perceived risk of unemployment.

Here are the most stressful jobs in America:

1. Firefighter

Stress Rank: 200
Stress Score: 110.936
Unemployment: 0%-4%
Hours Per Day: 11
Time Pressure: Very High
Competition: Low

"Firefighters frequently work irregular or unusual hours, or remain on call throughout the night. They risk heat exhaustion, smoke inhalation, and serious injury while on the job, and even the state of anticipation preceding a major threat can be highly stressful in itself. Firefighters are also sometimes required to spend long hours outdoors in bad weather," says CareerCast.com

Cities Cutting Firefighters Endangering Citizens