(a) Ambulance and rescue service employees of a public agency other
than a fire protection or law enforcement agency may be treated as
employees engaged in fire protection or law enforcement activities of
the type contemplated by sections 7(k) and 13(b)(20) if their services
are substantially related to firefighting or law enforcement activities
in that (1) the ambulance and rescue service employees have received
training in the rescue of fire, crime, and accident victims or
firefighters or law enforcement personnel injured in the performance of
their respective, duties, and (2) the ambulance and rescue service
employees are regularly dispatched to fires, crime scenes, riots,
natural disasters and accidents. As provided in Sec. 553.213(b), where
employees perform both fire protection and law enforcement activities,
the applicable standard is the one which applies to the activity in
which the employee spends the majority of work time during the work
period.
(b) Ambulance and rescue service employees of public agencies
subject to the Act prior to the 1974 Amendments do not come within the
section 7(k) or section 13(b)(20) exemptions, since it was not the
purpose of those Amendments to deny the Act's protection of previously
covered and nonexempt employees. This would include, for example,
employees of public agencies engaged in the operation of a hospital or
an institution primarily engaged in the care of the sick, the aged, the
mentally ill or defective who reside on the premises of such
institutions.
(c) Ambulance and rescue service employees of private organizations
do not come within the section 7(k) or section 13(b)(20) exemptions even
if their activities are substantially related to the fire protection and
law enforcement activities performed by a public agency or their
employer is under contract with a public agency to provide such
services.
