Details Of New Haven, Conn., Firefighting Exam
By Kristina Peterson, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- New Haven, Conn.'s white firefighters and city
officials couldn't agree on what constitutes a fair promotional exam in briefs
leading up to Monday's U.S. Supreme Court ruling on employment discrimination.
The white firefighters involved in the Ricci v. Stefano case, which involved
New Haven's decision to discard the tests, said the promotion exam was fair and
neutral. The city argued it had been unintentionally designed to put minority
firefighters at a disadvantage.
In 2003, New Haven hired professional testing firm Industrial/Organizational
Solutions, Inc. to develop its promotional exams for both captains and
lieutenants. Applicants needed to be well-versed on a wide range of topics
including fire science, building and high-rise construction and collapse,
advanced rescue techniques and how to respond in the case of fires and other
catastrophes.
The exam was composed of two sections. The first was a written exam of 100
multiple-choice questions focused on technical job knowledge that counted for
60% of the total score. According to the brief filed by Ricci and other
petitioners, the exams were written below a 10th-grade reading level.
Next came an oral exam, weighted 40%, in which panels of three experts
evaluated how well firefighters could assess a situation and direct others in an
emergency.
In its critique of the test, the city noted that the test contained questions
that were irrelevant to New Haven. This included whether to approach an
emergency from uptown or downtown - a distinction not meaningful in New Haven,
city officials said.
The city also argued that placing more emphasis on memorized knowledge put the
minority candidates at a disadvantage. If the oral exam had counted for 70% of
the total, three black firefighters would have been contenders for promotions,
attorneys for the city noted.
But the white firefighters, led by Frank Ricci, said the tests were not
skewed. Firefighters who completed a questionnaire following the exam overall
said it was "fair and job-related," they noted.
The tests were developed based on professional textbooks, in collaboration
with New Haven Fire Department's top two officers. Three months before the test,
the city gave firefighters a syllabus of the topics that would be covered to
help them study.
On Monday, Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing the Supreme Court's 5-4
conservative majority opinion, said New Haven violated Title VII of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination.
- By Kristina Peterson, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6619; kristina.peterson@
dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
06-29-091832ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
|