Are Lifeguards Being Paid Well Enough?

Are Lifeguards Being Paid Well Enough?

If the gift of life in itself is priceless, how then do you evaluate the worth of one life? Or even the true value of the services of a person or persons who saves the lives of others at the risk of theirs. It goes without saying that such services are not ideally priced regardless of the “pay”. While the services of a lifeguard comes with an annual salary, the fact that it is usually a matter of life and death when a lifeguard springs into action means they should be properly appreciated. This may hold true in some very exceptional places, but in most other cases, it isn’t. This then begs the question “Are lifeguards being paid well enough?”

To sufficiently answer this question, let’s take a look at what lifeguards are paid to do. There’s an almost endless array of things lifeguards do which are within and beyond the scope of their salaries such as clean the toilets and bathrooms, they deal with chlorine all day, which, by extension bleaches their hair and, to top it all off, they have to perform CPR on swimmers every once in a while because they try to swim recklessly leading to severe situations in the water. In such serious situations the lifeguards are normally the ones to get in trouble even if the swimmer had a nonchalant attitude toward water safety precautions.

Lifeguards are paid to think, by observing their surroundings and making quick decisions to save lives from peril, is quite tasking on the lifeguard. Studies say that while visual imaging and scanning which requires vigilance might seem easy, it is quite tasking to the brain and cannot be done without a substantial reduction in effectiveness for beyond 30 minutes. While a person’s attention can be reset after around five to ten minutes, the person must take a break without any other kinds of demands for attention removing them from their break. Chances are, depending on the day, the lifeguards’ breaks are just as tasking to their minds as when he or she is sitting on the chair watching over the civilians.

Now here is an exercise for you to practice the next time you are at a pool. Pretend you are a lifeguard and scan the water slowly, move your eyes from one person to another. Make sure they are still afloat, that they are not doing anything dangerous that could put themselves or others in harms way. Then imagine doing that same exercise for 8 hours a day for 5 days a week.  That is what lifeguards do while on the job, which leads to the question “Do you think lifeguards are being paid well enough?”

So How Much Does A Lifeguard Get Paid?

There are quite a number of variables to consider when it comes to the earning of lifeguards such as the region, state or country in question and in certain cases, even the frequency of engagement affects their salaries. The hourly wages of lifeguards at several pools in the United States range from $8.06 to $14.80 per hour but believe it or not in many parts of the world, lifeguards go home with a lot less than the average hourly earnings of a US lifeguard as pay for the entire days work. Sadly, the drowning in places like this that do not value the services of a lifeguard are a clear pointer that the efficiency of a lifeguard depends on their professionalism as much as it depends on how well these lifeguards are treated by the employers, wage inclusive.

With the median hourly wage of a lifeguard in the USA valued at $9.38, lifeguards earn a median salary of $19500 per year which typically ranges from $16770 to $30,790 depending on the location. One of the most touted “lucrative places” to be a lifeguard is in California. With Newport Beach Lifeguards supposedly said to be earning above $120,000 a year which has caused a few protests, it can be said that not very many people see the relevance of the services of a lifeguard.

Very many public servants do a lot less than save lives on a daily basis and get paid even more yet there isn’t any protest to this effect. Fact remains that when you are going under fast and gulping salt water, the last thing of concern to you is your lifeguards’ earnings, his skill, however, you must rely on.
Lifeguards in the United States earn less than 96% of service careers with their salaries at the bottom 94% of all careers in the United States. This means the Counseling Psychologist, Postal Services worker, Marriage Therapist, Family Social Worker, Meter Reader, Garbage Collector, and Taxi Drivers etc all earn more than the lifeguard who is constantly risking his life for theirs on a regular day at the job. Oh, and did I mention that for $8.54 an hour the lifeguard at a Tennessee pool would brave the odds, put his life on the line for yours?
So, are lifeguards really paid well enough? I think not!

Newport Beach California shouldn’t be an outrage; it should be the standard wage.╚

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