Comments on: Courts take new aim on pre-employment tests

By: John Englert

John Englert — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 14:02:25 +0000

The tests should have been used assuming they were scrutinized for bias during development. One has to presume that all eligible individuals have an equal opportunity to prepare.

By: Phyllis Onofrietti

Phyllis Onofrietti — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 19:48:02 +0000

If the test is designed to help identify the best candidates for Captain and this was communicated to all applicants as part of the decision process then the fire department should out have thrown out the tests. Certainly, the responsibility of a fire captain is a very serious one. He /she has the awesom task of directing people in a life and death situation. Race should not be an issue. The most competent candidate for the position is

By: hambym

hambym — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 19:19:25 +0000

This could be a blessing in disguise. If the Supreme Court as a whole realizes what Justice Souter verbalized, perhaps new legislation will appear to reverse the phenomenon.

EEOC has not previously been concerned with whether a process was valid or not, but merely if it resulted in disparate treatment.

Justice Scalia’s opinion is quite accurate, but until now of no regard to court or EEOC rulings.

By: Kate

Kate — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 18:40:31 +0000

Brian – you are right on! However, if you live in Southern Connecticut (as I do), it’s not difficult to understand why the city threw out the results. In my opinion, it truly was a race based decision.

By: Layla

Layla — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 18:17:48 +0000

If the tests were communicated to those applicants as a part of the decision process the fire department was in error in throwing them out. I agree with Brian, the department should have made the determination regarding testing prior to the applicants becoming envolved.

By: ML

ML — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:30:11 +0000

Of course the firemen who say it’s unfair that they weren’t promoted are right. They got the highest grades on an unbiased test. Come on–when will this race stuff stop? I think by the time you are done with high school, all references to race have to stop. Study in school and get the best grades you can. Then you just might be discriminated against if you’re black, white, young, fat, skinny, whatever. Life isn’t fair. Get over it and move on. I’m getting so tired of all the complaining about getting equal results in life. Work hard. Read and improve yourself. That’s the only way I know to get ahead in this world. And there are no guarantees of success even if you do all the “right” things. So, just stop complaining.

By: Ward

Ward — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:19:36 +0000

New Haven made its decision based on what they thought might happen in order to appease groups putting pressure on them for more diversity. Nothing could be more ignoble than making a decision based on intimidation rather than objectivity. I agree that the test should have been validated prior to use to ensure a disparate impact did not exist. Since the tests were approved for use the City should have truly backed its best candidates. Instead New Haven decided to defend candidates that did not successfully meet the criteria on the tests and who might have brought a law suit against the City. The populace deserves and demands the best they can get from their civil servants. So shouldn’t New Haven defend the top candidates first regardless of race – or – are we going to allow our Firefighters to choose who they will and won’t take out of a burning building based on the color of their skin?

By: Joyce E. Milles

Joyce E. Milles — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:07:40 +0000

The Fire Department should have used the test that had been devised as the evaluation tool, as long as the test was given to all who applied for the position. The action that the 20 applicants took seems appropriate.

By: David

David — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 16:50:43 +0000

Brian makes the right point. I was a test developer for cities and counties for many years. The key issue is whether the test is job-related and able to predict performance. If New Haven had done things right, i.e., established the validity of the test prior to its use, disparate impact charges would not be a big deal to defend. Had they not been able to establish validity, the test would not have been used. The fact is, New Haven did not do things right and the result was costly litigation and political turmoil. New Haven was not well-served by their civil service exam group.

By: Brian

Brian — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 14:14:03 +0000

In an article on msnbc.com, they stated that “the exams were designed by a professional testing firm (unnamed) that followed federal guidelines for mitigating disparate racial outcomes”

If this is the case, it’s hard to understand why the city decided there were flaws in the test AFTER the results came back, stating:
1. the written section measured memorization rather than actual skills needed for the jobs
2. lack of testing for leadership in emergency situations

New Haven, if they truly believed the test was flawed, should have arrived at that conclusion BEFORE they administered these tests. Now it just seems like they are trying to cover up something.