Ochotnicza Straż Pożarna w Polsce - czynniki determinujące wymianę pokoleń
Voluntary Fire Service in Poland - Factors Determining a Generational Renewal

Summary/Abstract: The tradition of the Voluntary Fire Service (OSP) in Poland, similarly as in many other countries across the world, goes back to the 19th century and over the last few years a huge number of voluntary fire service units have been grandly celebrating their jubilees of 100 years of operation. In the meantime, the OSP was facing many difficulties, which did not make it weaker; just on the contrary, all that made it stronger. Indeed, the period of political transformation revealed many negative effects in the OSP, especially clientelistic relationships and “a nostalgic vegetation”, with the name already suggesting some voluntary fire service structure getting concreted over. The OSPs have been still Poland’s most numerously represented NGO and, in the near future, it will definitely not change. However, many changes, including a strive toward professionalising a voluntary firefighter, can trigger some discouragement from a voluntary service and a generation gap which will be difficult to bridge. A process of going away from the value of unpaid work for the local communities can be irrevocable. With that in mind, getting to know the opinion of the volunteer firefighters, who can already notice, that they get successively divided into the better and the worse, professionals and amateurs, who are excluded from direct actions by applying systemic and administrational procedures more than a hundred years ago they were established for, and who have been continuously following the same objective, “To bring Glory to God, to bring a benefit to people”. The article presents the results of studies made among the OSP and MDP members to answer the question about the future of the OSP in Poland and to learn their opinions on what currently motivates the young people who join or leave the OSP, what should be done to increase the recruitment and to minimise the effects of a low generational renewal. The objective of the study has been also to address the question whether the OSP is still considered a “nostalgic” association.

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