(KTVI - myFOXstl.com) -- Your safety is at stake according to St. Louis City Director of Public Safety Sam Simon. This week Simon sent St. Louis Fire Chief Sherman George a warning - promote battalion chief and fire captain vacancies or, face disciplinary action which could include being fired.

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Supporters Rally Around Fire Chief Sherman George

Chief Sherman George
ST. LOUIS, MO (KTVI-myFOXstl.com) -- African Americans are rallying around St. Louis Fire Chief Sherman George over the promotions standoff. They say Mayor Francis Slay is micromanaging the fire department. FOX 2's Bonita Cornute has more details on their show of support

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ACLU Gets Involved With City Hall And Fire Dept. Issues

(KTVI - myFOXstl.com) -- Saint Louis' Director of Public Safety: out. A new man: in, but the new boss is certainly not the same as the old boss. Instead the city shakeup is designed to break up a years long logjam of promotions at the fire department. A new twist Monday night, the ACLU is getting involved. FOX 2's Andy Banker has more details.

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Charles Bryson Is New City Safety Director

A shake up just days before the racially charged battle over long delayed St. Louis city fire department promotions comes to a head. St. Louis’ Public Safety Director, Sam Simon, suddenly resigned Monday. His replacement is Charles Bryson, the mayor's deputy Chief of Staff. The big question is what does this mean for the promotions which are supposed to happen by this Friday. FOX 2's Chris Regnier has the details.

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St. Louis Public Safety Director Resigns

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- St. Louis City's Director of Public Safety is resigning from his position.

Mayor Francis Slay announced the resignation Monday morning and said the move is effective immediately. Advertisement

Slay's statement says Sam Simon quit his post to pursue other opportunities, but does not elaborate beyond that.

Simon will be immediately replaced by Charles Bryson, who previously served as Slay's Neighborhood Development Executive.

Simon grabbed headlines last week when he told St. Louis Fire Chief Sherman George to either promote a group of firefighters or face disciplinary action.

The promotions have been controversial because George says the promotion system is unfair.

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Firefighters Entrance Exam

City personnel director Rick Frank, by now a seasoned veteran of litigation surrounding the adequacy of tests to select and promote public employees, has cancelled the results of a recent exam that would have begun the process of hiring some new firefighters. Not every person who passed this test would have qualified to become a firefighter, but no one who failed it would ever have had the opportunity to join our Fire Department.

The personnel department cancelled the results of the test, which was devised by a company brought to the personnel department by Chief Sherman George, because Rick found that this specific test had an “unusually” low rate of passage. Just 30 percent of the applicants received passing grades in some general education subjects like reading comprehension and simple mathematics. For any test-giver, this level of failure signals some fundamental problem – and, these days, is a pretty good predictor of litigation.

Most of the ambitious young men and women who took a test that required mastery of some fundamental skills failed it, despite having arrived at the testing center with at least a high school diploma. The high failure rate, then, may be indicative of the aptitude of the test takers, the inadequacy of their education, or some flaw in the test or its methodology.

So, Rick is going to offer another test – just as rigorous as this test, but skipping the video screen format that this test used and replacing it with more traditional pencil and paper materials. If the same applicants fail it, Rick will have a better idea of what the problem is – and is not.

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Promotions, Now An Order

The most important issue for City residents and businesses is whether or not the Fire Department has the right people doing the right jobs. With one-third of the management jobs of the Fire Department being filled on a temporary basis, no one can be certain that the right people are working. That’s why the Public Safety Director, the President of the Board of Aldermen, and I have all urged the Fire Chief to make formal promotions.

He has not taken the suggestion.

On Tuesday, the requisition for the promotions was set to expire. The chief had not promoted anyone. In fact, he had not interviewed anyone, nor had he requested more time. So, the Public Safety Director asked for and received an extension. And, he has now directed the Fire Chief to make the promotions by the end of the day on September 14th.

Let’s be clear. The Public Safety Director’s order does not tell the Fire Chief who to promote. Rather, it tells him to select his captains and battalion chiefs from a list of eligible, tested firefighters — and to do it right now.

The most important issue for most firefighters — black and white -— is that the most qualified firefighters get the promotions. The City’s Director of Personnel has examined the test on which the promotion list is based — and he said it was valid. A Federal judge has examined the promotions test and, after hearing testimony from everyone involved, he said it was valid, did not discriminate, and legitimately tested the skills, knowledge, and ability needed to be a captain or battalion chief in the St. Louis Fire Department.

There are no excuses left.

The Fire Chief understands the chain of command. I believe he will obey the order. He knows that if he disobeys a direct order, he will face whatever appropriate disciplinary measures his supervisor selects and the Civil Service rules will allow.

I support the Fire Chief and hope he decides to do the right thing. But, it is time to make the promotions and move on.

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Fire candidates did poorly on test

By Jake Wagman

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

09/05/2007

ST. LOUIS — Scores of aspiring city firefighters could not answer basic math and reading questions on an entrance exam given this summer.

More than 70 percent of about 1,350 applicants failed the test, according to city personnel director Richard R. Frank. The city plans to scrap the results of the exam and retest all of the applicants at a later date.

That decision comes amid simmering tensions in the department over another exam — the promotional test for existing firefighters — that was the subject of a prolonged federal lawsuit.

“The last thing I want to do is use some examination that is going to be so controversial that it lands us in court again,” Frank said today.

The July test was the first part of an entrance exam that applicants must pass before qualifying to take a physical fitness test. Candidates who pass both phases are eligible to become fire privates, the lowest rank in the department.

But, Frank said, the vast majority of applicants taking this year's test did not fare well enough on the reading comprehension or arithmetic questions on the test to advance.

“They obviously could not read and respond to the questions appropriately,” Frank said. “There was basic math questions that they were not able to complete.”

Such as: Each length of hose is 30 feet long. The fire is 90 feet away. How many lengths of hose are needed to reach the fire?

“We're talking about elementary level skill,” Frank said.

Though Frank did not have immediately available the passage rates for previous exams, he said that a 70 percent failure rate was “highly unusual.”

The exam was designed by Ergometrics, a Seattle-firm that distributes entry-level exams for a wide-range of jobs, from prison guards to bank tellers. Company officials did not return repeated requests for comment today.

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From the Mayor's DeskFriday, August 31, 2007

Simon Said?

Did an action taken by the City’s public safety director, Sam Simon, nearly leave the Fire Department without some necessary firefighting equipment? It is a question worth asking, but only if one is willing to accept the truth as an answer.

Five years ago, two St. Louis firefighters died tragically. Their widows filed suit against the manufacturer and distributor of some of the Department’s equipment. In the course of the first trial, testimony suggested that equipment might be defective. Both widows are convinced the equipment contributed to the deaths of their husbands.

Armed with that information, Simon wrote to the distributor asking for a $1.2 million refund. The distributor responded by offering to remove the equipment, but without refunding any cash. Simon declined. At no point did Simon ever order the equipment removed.

That’s the simple chronology that "supports" the baseless assertion by some partisans that Simon’s actions were improper. And that assertion, of course, inflames critics of Chief Sherman George, who see his hand behind charges made against his boss.

Meanwhile, the second trial is underway, and the equipment remains on the fire trucks. The City’s lawyers continue to negotiate with both the manufacturer and the distributor. Partisans and critics alike continue to bicker, sometimes egged on by bad reporting.

The City will put a bond issue on the February ballot to fund the purchase of new equipment, which will settle only the simplest aspect of the Fire Department’s problem.

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Political Eye

Black Caucus backs Chief George
Thursday, August 23, 2007 8:11 AM CDT

The Aldermanic Black Caucus delivered something of a surprise - for Fire Chief Sherman George and his many citizen supporters, it was a pleasant surprise - when it released a detailed a resounding letter of support for the chief’s resistance to Mayor Francis G. Slay’s pressure for him to make promotions from a contested 2004 list, based on a testing process that George rejects as flawed - regardless of Judge Rodney Sippel’s ruling in the suit filed by Captain Addington Stewart of FIRE.

Because of logistics in last week’s newspaper deadline, the American was unable to print the letter at length or work it into front-page reporting on issues surrounding the Fire Department and Department of Public Safety. Here’s the letter, with only minor edits:

Members of the St. Louis African American Aldermanic Caucus announce their support of Fire Chief Sherman George “in his ongoing effort to improve and ensure a professional selection process for promotions in the St. Louis Fire Department.”

Caucus members feel that Chief George’s caution toward making promotions in light of pending court appeals that relate to issues with the present St. Louis Fire Department promotion list is a reasonable and a logical approach. The Caucus feels that apparent pressure on the chief from his superiors promote from the present, inadequate and possibly illegal list of applicants is inappropriate and unwarranted in light of these pending legal appeals. In the long run, promotions now with pending appeals could cause more litigation later, thus costing the City additional money. Until these appeals are ruled upon promotions made now could be overturned wasting staff time, effort and possibly causing internal confusion in the City’s Fire Department.

The Caucus feels that the numerous issues raised by the Fire Chief related to the inadequacies of the present promotion list merit consideration, warrant serious review and calls for major changes. It is the Caucus’ understanding that the present promotion list, which was created by the City’s personnel department, was not compiled using the typical criteria for making promotions within top-notch fire departments like the St. Louis Fire Department, led by Chief George. Until the present list, previous local criteria mirrored national standards, which include: a multiple-choice written test measuring basic technical knowledge; a fire-scene simulation measuring advanced technical knowledge; an assessment measuring employee supervisory skills; and an assessment measuring administrative skills.

The Caucus understands that a multiple-choice written test measuring technical knowledge and an unrecorded oral assessment were the only measurements used to compile the present promotion list. The Caucus feels that such a compiled list is grossly inadequate from which to make promotion selections and should be updated using criteria proposed by Chief George.

A recent court ruling on one law suit related to the present promotion list only addresses the issue of racial discrimination. It did not address the issue of the inadequacies or possible legal unfairness of the testing procedure used to compile the present list. Because of this, the recent court ruling therefore does not fully speak to concerns raised by Chief George. Still further, the Caucus understands that the present inadequate and extremely controversial list is at least three years old. However, instead of throwing out this list the personnel director of the City has decided to extend its use until 2008. It is apparent that if the chief uses this list as recommended by his superiors, additional law suits will follow. The Caucus can see no reason to use this list and not start over. For whatever reason, at the very least, if the Chief should find it necessary to make selections from this list he should be extremely careful and do all that he can to ensure that any promotions reflect the highest possible qualifications.

Concerns about Fire Department procedures to temporarily fill vacant command positions are unwarranted and do not justify pushing the chief to promote. Present procedures place the most senior person in charge at any fire house. Many of these senior fire fighters are also candidates for advancement. It is the Caucus’ understanding that this type of temporary filling of vacancies has been an effective and long-standing procedure within the Fire Department long before Chief George’s tenure as chief.

The Caucus feels that in light of this, there is no need to push the fire chief to promote. According to the City Charter, the Chief is the promoting authority in this matter. Because of the highly technical nature of these jobs, it only makes sense that the chief has this power and responsibility. Caucus members feel that it would be better for the City to address Chief George’s concerns by applying and using more comprehensive standards proposed by the chief that better ensure a quality City Fire Department. Caucus members feel it is time that all significant parties in City government related to public safety begin to work together.

This is the time to set aside any differences that might exist and unite. This is the time to unite around the needs of our city and the clear and laudable efforts of our fire chief to improve the ability of the City to provide professional and enhanced fire protection services.

It is becoming increasingly clear that Slay will face a significant fight from the black community if he persists in pushing the agenda of Local 73 in the name of “healing our racial divide.” Whatever the mayor and Jeff Rainford elect to do in this matter, the EYE sincerely hopes they drop the “healing the racial divide” rhetoric when addressing members and leaders of the black community. They simply don’t have any credibility in the bank on this sensitive topic. Black folks know pigs don’t fly.

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Fire test rift leaves top scorers in limbo

By Jake Wagman

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

08/23/2007

ST. LOUIS — Firefighters Lonnie Hughes and Wayne Killingsworth know that being No. 1 doesn't always pay.

Hughes, who has been with the St. Louis Fire Department since 1978, scored the highest on the department's test for battalion chief. Killingsworth, a 15-year veteran, scored the highest on the department's promotional exam for captain.

But since 2004, neither Hughes nor Killingsworth has been promoted.

Fire Chief Sherman George, who questions the effectiveness of the test, has not promoted the pair and about 25 other candidates, despite a prolonged court fight and political battle that climaxed late last month with a stern letter from Mayor Francis Slay.
The dispute has exposed a deep racial rift in one of the state's largest and most active fire departments.

Lost in the war of wills between the department and City Hall are firefighters — white, black and Hispanic — who spent hours studying for the tests, only to do well and not reap the financial rewards.

"I neglected my kids in the hopes of being promoted, so I could provide a better life for my family," said Killingsworth, 38. "I do these things the city asks me to do. I perform well. And I can't get promoted."

After three years, firefighters are looking at about $40,000 they would each have made had they been promoted right away.

Instead, many firefighters are filling the jobs that they tested for, serving on an "acting" basis without a pay increase.

Three years ago, a group of African-American firefighters filed a federal suit alleging that the promotional exams for captain and battalion chief were unfair. They questioned why they were not allowed to record the oral portion of the exam, and accused some union firefighters of cheating.

Recent history suggests why they were suspicious.

In 2002, four firefighters, three white, one African-American, were fired for cheating or trying to cheat on a promotional exam.

Even so, a judge ruled that the 2004 tests did not intentionally discriminate, and that the black firefighters could not prove there was an "adverse impact."

In the St. Louis Fire Department, battalion chief is a key post, a rung above captain and a step away from deputy chief.

On the battalion chief test, the firefighters with the top six scores are first in line for promotion. In 2004, the top scorers were two African-Americans, one Hispanic, one white woman and two white men.

"This is as good or better than what I've seen in other municipalities," testified Rick Jacobs, whose firm E.B. Jacobs, developed the test. "I would say this is an excellent representation of diversity at the top of a promotion list."

Jacobs, based in State College, Pa., has been testing public and private employees across the country for more than 25 years, offering promotional exams in fields ranging from law enforcement to transportation.

The captain's test was less diverse. Of the top 25, four were African-American, and the rest were white.

Hughes, an African-American who scored highest on the battalion chief test, is now acting battalion chief at Engine House No. 28, a hectic station where the motto is "Sleep when you're dead."

The other African-American finalist, Capt. Steve Simpson, is a spokesman for George. Hughes and Simpson declined to comment.

Many black firefighters such as Hughes belong to FIRE, the Firefighters Institute for Racial Equality, a fraternal organization formed in the late 1960s after black firefighters were excluded from a union picnic.

FIRE was also a part of the 2004 federal suit against the tests, where the plaintiffs stated that they believed that "the city wants to make sure that no African-American is eligible to be chief of the department again."

One of the plaintiffs, firefighter Leonard Davis, said that he felt no matter how close he came to advancement, the system was designed to hold black firefighters back.

"You see it, but you won't touch it," Davis said in a deposition.

Chris Molitor, president of the International Association of Firefighters Local 73, said the fight over promotions is not about race or color.

"One comment one of my guys made is: 'It's not black. It's not white — it's green,'" Molitor said.

For firefighters, each rise in rank comes with an average salary bump of $13,000 a year, plus a more generous pension.

But, right now, there are only 22 openings for captain and five for battalion chief. An additional battalion chief position is expected to open. Firefighters who don't score high enough to make those positions can find themselves stuck at a lower pay grade.

Pay is also based on years of service, making most experienced city firefighters reluctant to move to another fire department.

That's why the debate surrounding the promotional tests is so intense, Molitor said.

"It's basically affecting the amount of money you make for the rest of your life," Molitor said.

Molitor says the union has pushed for an additional position — such as an engineer post — that would ease the struggle for promotions while providing a bridge from an entry-level private to the higher ranks.

For now, though, firefighters continue to be frustrated.

Capt. Gail Simmons, who scored second-highest on the test for battalion chief, would be the first woman in the history of the department to hold such a position. Simmons, a single mother, had to pull her son out of private school while waiting for the raise that will come with a promotion.

"My life has been on hold for three years," she said.

Duane Greer, a Hispanic firefighter in line for a promotion to battalion chief, says he can no longer dwell on the situation because it "makes me sick to my stomach."

"This is life-changing money to us," Greer said, who makes about $66,000 a year.

Greer, who was hired 20 years ago this month, worries that the tension between those up for promotion and those who believe the process was unfair may spill out of the firehouse to the fire scene — making an already tough job more treacherous.

"Right now, there can be all kinds of animosity inside of the firehouse, but, when the bell hits, we all feel like we can do the job," Greer said. "More and more, guys are doing it, but they are looking over their shoulder. And that just creates a dangerous situation."

Meanwhile, firefighters on the promotion list continue to watch George for any signs that he might act. In a letter to George on July 31, Slay warned the chief that unless the issue of promotions is addressed, "it could severely damage your ability to lead the department." In a letter back to Slay, George expressed concerns over whether the exam adequately tested the necessary skills needed for a higher rank.

Still, George wrote that he would request the promotion lists and "review them for appropriate candidates" — though he stopped short of saying he would make the promotions.

"I said my plan is to look at the list," George said last week. "That's what I'm going to do."

Firefighters up for promotion received letters last week to schedule an interview with the chief.

Yet those such as Killingsworth, who remain in job limbo, are not optimistic.

In the weeks leading up to the 2004 captain's test, Killingsworth said he studied eight hours a day. Now, he depends more on his off-day job — a lawn care business — to keep his four children, ages 7 to 13, in parochial school.

"I basically had to let it go," he said. "Divine intervention will have to take place if I'm going to get promoted."

jwagman@post-dispatch.com | 314-622-3580

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Investigator to Determine Whether Orlando Firefighters Cheated

Story by wftv.com

ORLANDO, Fla. --

Orlando Fire Chief Jim Reynolds has asked an independent investigator to determine whether some of his top officials cheated to get ahead.

On June 29, 2007, the city attorney received a CD and an anonymous letter that claimed up to four firefighters studied actual test scenario before they took the chief exams back in 2002.

The tipster claimed the CD was a recording of the conversation firefighters Rudolph Johnson and Brian Will had while listening, by radio, to an actual tactical test to become an Orlando district fire chief.

During the test, candidates had to make split-second decisions, like what to do if a bakery had caught fire.

The two men allegedly heard on the audio recording did eventually pass the test. Johnson is a deputy chief, and Will is a district chief.