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Union Expresses ‘No Confidence’ In Escambia EMS Leadership
February 6, 2024
The local EMS union has executed a vote of “no confidence” in Escambia County’s EMS leadership.
The letter, dated Monday and addressed to the four sitting Escambia County commissioners, said the bargaining members of the International Association of EMTs and Paramedics Local 325 executed a vote of no confidence in EMS Chief David Torsell and Deputy Chief Christopher Stevens, citing “unsuccessful attempts to resolve the culture of harassment, tyranny and lack of health and safety for both the Escambia County community and its EMS providers”.
The union claims leadership has reduced the number of ambulances available to answer calls while forcing employees to work “unsafe and unreasonable” hours.
“Chief Torsell’s decisions while in office have created a crisis in which the community is suffering and us first responders are exhausted,” the letter signed by union leadership stated. They also alleged that Torsell has willfully misled Public Safety Direct Eric Gilmore in order to obstruct oversight.
Union leadership demanded that Torsell and Stephens resign or be removed immediately.
Escambia County has not responded to the allegations.
Comments
7 Responses to “Union Expresses ‘No Confidence’ In Escambia EMS Leadership”
Take names and emotions out of all of this, it’s plain and simple: Failed EMS Leadership.
Now, it’s time to see what Public Safety Leadership does to resolve this issue and restore Emergency Medical Services to the citizens. The citizens deserve better than this, period.
I do find it weird that an organization this size, has so many divisions and kingdoms. Consolidation may be better suited with a tighter chain of command???
BOCC: It’s time to take appropriate actions. Please do not let us down.
@Jeannie the present administration is from out of the area. I believe that is what causes some of the tension. We all hate the good ole boy system that Escambia County has but as soon as someone is brought in from out of town, this is what you get. Then people want someone from here and the history of EMS shows what a cluster that makes. It sounds to me that the present EMS management is holding certain employees accountable for their actions. Then like spoiled little children they take their ball and go home. How many have been hired? I am sure the 100 that have left, left for other reasons besides management issues. I wager to say some have retired, moved from the area, gotten other degrees and/or left the field. Just because a call is a transfer call, they all go by acuity. Someone’s toothache does not trump a medical call from a nursing home. Emergency medicine is all about acuity from the field to the emergency department.
Sounds like to me they need to bring in a whole new leadership from some other area that don’t know anyone from this area at all, get rid of all the bad apples.
First and foremost, this absolutely sounds like someone in the EMS administration.
The union meeting that was held had more than 15 people. But if in fact someone was observing the meeting hall then that would be illegal activity. The lack of attention to the negligence of these two does not exonerate them. They have repeatedly chosen to strip the county of 911 coverage by placing ambulances on transfers. They treat their employees horribly. This isn’t a small amount of people. The vast majority of employees are unhappy and do not support this management. You attempting to lie about the amount of support only shows how actually out of touch you are.
It’s hard to claim effective leadership with 100+ voluntary resignations. Workers flee inept leaders. ECEMS may look good financially but that isn’t sustainable when it comes at the cost of employees and public safety.
Lou Belanger, John Thompson or Kolby cook whichever name you prefer you are an absolute clown defending this ECEMS administration. Everything they have done has been to cause animosity within these so-called relationships that are being built. The fire department and emergency services have never hated each other as much as they do now. And that starts at the top. The truth will come to light with all the nasty And irreversible things that the EMS manager and his cronies have carried out over the last two years. As far as the union only having 15 people participate in this vote just goes to show how you are spreading false propaganda. Which is exactly what this administration expects from their supervisors , every employee that has left Escambia county EMS in these two years has done it for good and legitimate reason and that is to get away from the toxic behavior. Feel free to rebuttal, but come with facts please
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Why should Escambia Co respond? If Torsell and Stephens were negligent in their job duties, the BOCC would’ve already addressed it. The barely above water union called for an ambiguous emergency meeting, without details, but informed only a small select group and got a 99% vote via 14 out of the 15 that were told to show. Their issues are baseless; no Chief/Director/Manager can fire an employee without going through the proper channels. If “100” people left in 2 years, there was a good reason, none of which was nefarious. People seem to forget, Escambia Co EMS is self funded, Torsell has spent 2 years implementing programs and fostering partnerships to assist in increasing revenue which has allowed the department to update equipment, ambulances and hire more employees. Until then, employees that are helpfully picking up overtime have been sent north to a slower station to get rest and the regular on duty crew is being sent into town to run calls. You have a small select group of employees that are resistant to work, structure, and change. They preferred the dumpster fire that existed before Torsell was hired, because as long as you feed a fire, it will keep burning, distracting those that are watching it. Instead of taking a job that fits their lackadaisical work ethics and move on with life, this small group has taken to facebook to bully, harass, defame and deflect their disillusioned inflated sense of self onto residents that are unaware of how EMS works. If you have to dox, stalk, spam, threaten and launch smear campaigns upon department heads because being held accountable for your actions is profoundly insulting – you might not be cut out for emergency services or working with the general public.