Are SWAT/HRT/etc.. Teams membership’s made up mostly of volunteers?  If you choose to become a member of the SWAT team do you receive a bonus type pay for being on the team? And the real reason I posted this is the next question! Do Patrol/Non-SWAT officers talk shit about SWAT members or make jokes about the SWAT team? Are they jealous of you and ridicule you?

The reason I ask! I work at a chemical manufacturing plant, we have an in house ‘Emergency Response Team’ that is trained in Industrial fire fighting and Haz-Mat (Operations, Technician level).  I’ve worked at the plant for six years, and been a member of the ERT for three. It is all volunteer, and up intil a year ago we didn’t receive any type of monetary bonus but before that we had and still do have a really great incentive program.

We constantly battle ridicule, and are the butt of many jokes! And the jealousy runs amok, they got jealous when we got a new pumper, new turnout gear, t-shirts, jackets, new alpha/numeric pagers... Everytime we get something 'incentive' wise, and word gets around the plant,the jackasses start running thier mouths

These morons don’t realize we are putting our life on the lines for not only our jobs but theirs as well!

My thing is if you don’t want to be a volunteer and be a member of a ‘Specialized Intity’ in your place of employment, then that’s fine! Just don’t fuck with the guys and gals that do!

Guess I'm just ranting, 'cause today we where doing some training at the plant and I heard a guy running his trap about, "How he would never risk his life for nothing!" But himself of course!!!!!

Well gotta turn in..... Got 'tah be up early in the morning... Going to the fire college do do some more TRAINING! [snoopy]

Same shit every where you go. Yes and yes to both of your questions.

A lot of SWAT cops bring it on themselves. High speed, agressive types tend to be prima donnas of some sort or another.

Why do you care what they say? F-them do your job and go home. They can cry if they want, but will be begging for help when your needed. Those who complain the most are the ones who will be screaming the loudest.

Speaking from experience... SWAT is generally an overated, underused, expensive necessity.

By the time a team gets assembled, the fun is over. Most of the time anyway. They do have a very narrow, specific function, primarily for high risk warrant entries or standoffs. Thats about it.

This is the reason you see an increase in patrol level "tactical" training.

Twice I've been on high speed calls which were over with by the time the swat team was just starting to be called up. Unless you have a full time team to respond immediately it usually falls to patrol to solve the problem as they are there first. It's no slam on swat but that's just the way it is...

Our SET team is made up of regular patrol officers.  It's voluntary duty, but they do get overtime pay for their training time.  The good thing about the way they operate is that there are always a few of them on duty at any given time.

Ours is as tripltap described...we do have some prima donnas and just yesterday when asked why I didn't try out for the SWAT Team (because when I was in the service I had served in some "high speed" units at a "high speed" capacity) I replied that not only did I have a full plate now, but that there were a couple of team members who I would not want stacked behind me with loaded weapons...

 "there were a couple of team members who I would not want stacked behind me with loaded weapons..." - SkyShark

So very true. They are few and far between but it does happen.