Many communities offer some form of incentive to volunteers.

Wildwood - Many communities offer some form of incentive to volunteers. It is not a salary or payment. For example Wildwood gives volunteers a clothing allowance. It is a pittance. In order to qualify, members must maintain established participation percentages. Others offer very small pensions after years of service. Again it is nothing near a salary. It is called an incentive for a reason. The point being, of course, volunteers save Americans over 40 Billion dollars a year in salaries and benefits while still providing fire suppression services.