Two years ago, Barrington officials made the difficult decision to go without lifeguards at the town beach for half of August.

Then-Barrington Town Manager Jim Cunha said it was a manpower issue — there were not enough lifeguards to staff Barrington Beach full-time. 

That has not been an issue this year. 

Barrington Recreation Department Director Michele Geremia said that while Barrington and many other coastal communities struggle to fill lifeguard openings for the summer season, she has been fortunate this year to fully staff the town beach. 

“I ended up with nine lifeguards” this season, Geremia said, adding that all of the lifeguards are from town. 

Geremia said many of the lifeguards have worked for the town in the past. She has also done some recruiting for new hires. Geremia said she relies on word of mouth to find interested applicants. In addition, the town’s swimming programs are often great spots to find future lifeguards. 

The town also increased the pay for lifeguards. The beach manager (who also works as a lifeguard) earns $21 per hour. The pay drops to $16 per hour for some of the other guards. 

Geremia believes that better pay has helped with the hiring process. 

Barrington may also benefit from fewer age restrictions than some other communities. For example, Westport, Mass. has struggled in the past to find enough lifeguards but also requires its guards to be 18 or older. Barrington has some lifeguards that are 15 years old. 

Shift work

Geremia has structured the lifeguard work into half-hour stations:

• Half-hour at the beach house, cleaning the bathrooms and showers, etc.

• Half-hour in the lifeguard chair

• Half-hour walking the beach, helping clean up the beach and monitor

• Half-hour at the beach entrance check-in booth