11.3 Rules of Conduct (Shall / Shall Not)
Key Takeaways
- Every member is expected to operate in a highly self-disciplined manner and regulate their own conduct in a positive, productive, and mature way; failure may result in discipline from counseling to dismissal.
- ALL MEMBERS SHALL follow manuals/directives; protect the public on and off duty; work competently; reflect credit on the Department; supervisors manage considerately / subordinates follow positively; keep good order; stay informed; protect members’ welfare; operate safely; stay physically fit; observe hours; obey the law; care for equipment.
- MEMBERS SHALL NOT engage in activity detrimental to the Department; create conflicts of interest or use position for personal gain; fight; abuse sick leave; steal; use alcohol/drugs/substances that impair capacity while on duty; or engage in sexual activity while on duty.
- Rules of Conduct work together with the PFD Way as the philosophy and conduct standards for members.
- On/off-duty public protection and on-duty substance/sexual prohibitions are high-yield exam items because they are absolute packet language.
11.3 Rules of Conduct (Shall / Shall Not)
Quick Answer: Every Phoenix Fire Department member must operate in a highly self-disciplined manner and regulate their own conduct in a positive, productive, and mature way. Failure may bring discipline from counseling to dismissal. ALL MEMBERS SHALL follow manuals, protect the public on and off duty, work competently, reflect credit, manage/follow considerately, keep order, stay informed, protect welfare, operate safely, stay fit, observe hours, obey the law, and care for equipment. MEMBERS SHALL NOT harm the Department, create conflicts/personal-gain misuse, fight, abuse sick leave, steal, use impairing alcohol/drugs on duty, or engage in sexual activity on duty.
Section Eight of the official study packet—“Rules of Conduct”—pairs with the PFD Way as the philosophy and conduct standards for members. On the recruit exam, these items appear as list recall, true/false, and “which action violates policy?” scenarios. Memorize the policy sentence, then the Shall list and the Shall Not list in packet language.
The basis: self-disciplined self-regulation
The packet’s foundation policy is exam-critical:
Every member of the Phoenix Fire Department is expected to operate in a highly self-disciplined manner and is responsible to regulate his/her own conduct in a positive manner, productive and mature way. Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action ranging from counseling to dismissal.
| Concept | Exam meaning |
|---|---|
| Self-disciplined | You police your own behavior—conduct is not “only when watched.” |
| Positive, productive, mature | Standard for how self-regulation looks day to day |
| Counseling → dismissal | Full discipline range; minor and major consequences exist |
This policy echoes PFD Way language about self-discipline and accountability. If a question asks the basis for the Rules of Conduct regulations, answer with this self-regulation policy—not “only what the captain orders that day.”
ALL MEMBERS SHALL (items 1–13)
Learn these as affirmative duties. The packet numbers them; the exam may paraphrase, so lock the ideas.
| # | Shall duty (packet language condensed) |
|---|---|
| 1 | Follow Operation Manuals and written directives of both the Phoenix Fire Department and the City of Phoenix |
| 2 | Use training and capabilities to protect the public at all times, both on and off duty |
| 3 | Work competently so all department programs operate effectively |
| 4 | Always conduct themselves to reflect credit on the Department |
| 5 | Supervisors manage in an effective, considerate manner; subordinates follow instructions in a positive, cooperative manner |
| 6 | Conduct themselves to create good order inside the Department |
| 7 | Keep themselves informed to do their jobs effectively |
| 8 | Be concerned and protective of each member’s welfare |
| 9 | Operate safely and use good judgment |
| 10 | Keep themselves physically fit |
| 11 | Observe the work hours of their position |
| 12 | Obey the law |
| 13 | Be careful of Department equipment and property |
High-yield “Shall” clusters for the exam
Authority and paperwork: Manuals and written directives of both PFD and the City (not only station tradition).
Public protection without a clock-out: Protect the public on and off duty. Off-duty misconduct that abandons public-protection values can still fail this standard.
Role pair for supervisors and subordinates (item 5): This is a two-sided duty. Supervisors are not free to manage harshly; subordinates are not free to follow with resistance. Both halves are testable.
Member welfare and safety: Protect each other (item 8) and operate safely with good judgment (item 9). These connect to Total Wellness, Firestrong, and the safety chapters.
Fitness, hours, law, property: Items 10–13 are short and easy points if you memorize them: physically fit, observe work hours, obey the law, careful of equipment and property.
MEMBERS SHALL NOT (items 14–20)
| # | Prohibition |
|---|---|
| 14 | Engage in any activity that is detrimental to the Department |
| 15 | Engage in a conflict of interest to the Department or use their position for personal gain or influence |
| 16 | Fight |
| 17 | Abuse their sick leave |
| 18 | Steal |
| 19 | Use alcoholic beverages, debilitating drugs, or any substance which could impair physical or mental capacities while on duty |
| 20 | Engage in any sexual activity while on duty |
How to use the “Shall Not” list under test pressure
- Detrimental activity is broad: anything that harms the Department can fit item 14 even if not named in 16–20.
- Conflict of interest / personal gain (15) covers using the badge for influence or private advantage—not only cash theft (theft is separately item 18).
- Fight (16) is absolute in the list—do not invent “only if you start it” exceptions the packet does not give.
- Sick leave abuse (17) is its own rule, separate from legitimate illness reporting in Section Nine.
- Steal (18) covers Department and related property theft scenarios.
- Alcohol/drugs/impairing substances on duty (19) targets capacity while on duty—pair with fitness-for-duty culture.
- Sexual activity on duty (20) is an explicit prohibition—high-yield true/false material.
| Theme | Shall (do) | Shall Not (don’t) |
|---|---|---|
| Integrity & credit | Reflect credit; obey law; competent work | Detrimental activity; conflict of interest; steal |
| People & order | Protect welfare; good order; considerate management / positive followership | Fight; sexual activity on duty |
| Readiness | Physically fit; observe hours; operate safely | Alcohol/drugs impairing on duty; abuse sick leave |
| Resources | Care for equipment | Steal; personal gain from position |
Rules of Conduct + PFD Way
The packet introduces the list as directives that, along with the PFD Way, represent philosophy and conduct standards. On multi-part questions:
- PFD Way = cornerstones and customer-service philosophy
- Rules of Conduct = explicit shall / shall not duties and bans
Both apply to all members. Rank does not exempt anyone from the list.
Situational judgment cues
When a scenario describes misconduct, map it to the nearest rule:
- Gossip that destroys order → may fail good order / reflect credit / detrimental activity
- Ignoring manuals → fails Shall #1
- Supervisor berates for sport → fails Shall #5 (considerate management)
- Subordinate refuses instructions with attitude → fails Shall #5 (positive, cooperative followership)
- On-duty impairment → Shall Not #19
- Using uniform status for free personal favors → Shall Not #15
Study checklist for Section 11.3
- Quote the self-discipline policy and discipline range (counseling to dismissal).
- Recite all 13 Shall duties, especially on/off-duty public protection and the supervisor/subordinate pair.
- Recite all 7 Shall Not prohibitions without softening them.
- Link the list to the PFD Way as joint standards.
- Practice mapping short scenarios to the numbered rules rather than inventing personal ethics language.
What is the packet’s stated basis for the Rules of Conduct regulations?
According to ALL MEMBERS SHALL, Phoenix firefighters must use their training and capabilities to protect the public at which times?
Which pair correctly reflects Rules of Conduct item 5 about supervisors and subordinates?
Which of the following is a MEMBERS SHALL NOT prohibition in the official study packet?