"Seventy-five percent of the women surveyed said that they had some type of incident in their fire service department, whether it was harassment or innuendos or experiences of isolation," said Moccio, co-author of the study "A National Report Card on Women in Firefighting."

Leah Stoner isn't a paid firefighter. She volunteers in Cayuga Heights and said she's never had a bad experience with her department.

"Our department is really good about treating men and women equally. It's very friendly, very open, more of a progressive type department I guess you could say," said Stoner.

Study shows few women are firefighters

Women make up a very small percentage of firefighters in paid departments, according to a study co-authored by a Cornell University faculty member. The study says women are often harassed by male co-workers. But as our Allison Lazarz reports, the experience at a volunteer department may not be the same as the study portrays it in paid departments.

"There isn't the competition for the wage and competition for the small number of people recruited that get the job, so it becomes more of a contest," said Moccio.

Even though Stoner hasn't had any problems with her department, she said that before she became a firefighter, the idea that it's a male dominated profession did concern her a little bit.

"I was under the impression that it might be more male-centric and hard for a woman to get into and enjoy herself and when I joined here I was completely disproven," said Stoner.

Moccio said many volunteers go on to become paid firefighters, so their experiences with a volunteer department can have a direct effect on their decision to pursue a firefighting career.

Moccio works for Cornell's Institute for Women and Work.

To read more about the study, visit http://firechief.com/leadership/management-administration/fair_shake_0401/.