Mass. firefighters' organization raps revision to new promotion exam
A promotional test due to be administered to Massachusetts firefighters seeking to move up the ladder in November 2022 was canceled just a few days before.
The state Human Resources Division promised to have a new test by March, when the current promotion list expires.
The state's umbrella organization representing more than 12,000 unionized professional firefighters is unhappy with a component of the new exam. And it is unhappy it was not allowed to weigh in on the proposed revision.
Why exam was canceled
Massachusetts professional firefighters have been waiting months for the Human Resources Division to “fix” a promotional examination scrapped in November, just days before hundreds of firefighters were due to take it.
Now, just a month before the promised fix is complete and the test ready to administer, the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts, an umbrella organization representing more than 12,000 paid union firefighters throughout the state, has expressed concern with the validity of the revised examination.
The revision to the 80-question multiple-choice exam includes a “situational judgment question that will be graded by subject-matter experts,” said Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts President Richard MacKinnon Jr.
What's the issue with the revised exam?
The original test compiled the questions from a reading list made available to firefighters. The revision would include a written response to a fire-scene scenario, MacKinnon said.
“Different departments have different training protocols,” said MacKinnon, who explained that responses could differ from department to department, varying on accepted practices, training and manpower.
The state opted to cancel the promotional examination and refused to grade a similar examination taken by police officers seeking sergeant’s stripes, based on the outcome of a class action suit filed in 2009 by police officers, Tatum et al v. Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
In his decision filed in October, Suffolk Superior Court Judge Douglas H. Wilkins ruled that the claims of the officers filing suit against Massachusetts were valid and that the promotional examination had an adverse impact on minority candidates.
In his ruling, Wilkins found that an 80-question multiple-choice exam extrapolated from a reading list provided to applicants does not adequately reflect the rigors and reality of the job, and that the best test takers don’t necessarily make the best field officers.
Would new test have adverse impact on minority candidates?
In October, the Human Resources Division reacted to the ruling by scrapping the firefighter promotional examination, which they said had been created following the same format and could have an adverse impact on minority candidates.
“We understand the need for changes,” MacKinnon said.
The professional organization is concerned that its attempts to meet with the state to offer “live feedback” to the proposed changes have been met with silence.
Monday, the organization issued a letter to its membership, decrying the lack of input, finally achieving a face-to-face Thursday when it expressed “its strong opposition to the proposed format.”
The organization contends the written essay question is the wrong approach and that it could “open the door to more lawsuits,” MacKinnon said.
He added that he expects new study guides to be distributed by Monday.
“But that’s less than a month before the test,” he said.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Massachusetts' attempt to fix a promotional exam could mean lawsuits
