Well, Hal, thanks for the Jiffy Lube offer to help ease my way into GenPop (or is that for GenPop to ease their way into me?). Still, I think my butt is safe.
The Secretary of Interior noted, before Congress, that: "Seasonal employees are entitled to the same benefits as temporary employees, wherein they are eligible to earn annual and sick leave, if they work a full-time or part-time schedule. Employees are not eligible for coverage under the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance program or the Federal Employees Retirement System, but are covered by Social Security and unemployment compensation..." No, different states have different las, but California specifically notes that wild fire experts fall under the "seasonal" category and can apply for unemployment benefits IF they have worked the required number of hours. There isn't a fraud investigator that would find a problem with this in the four states I checked...CA, CO, MT, and ID.
Well, when in doubt read the law.