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From The Secretary ...
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| By Frank Kelly, Secretary | ||||||
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| “Say it aint’ so, Joe!!!”. Word on the street has it that the re-administration of the H-30 Captains’ promotional process may have hit another snag. It seems that the pre-World War II tape recorders used in conjunction with the Fire Scene Simulation may have malfunctioned again. Now lets be professional about this, (like your name tags), it would only be the second hiccup in ten years, so give the Administration a break.
The candidate follows the guide lines, secures the job announcement, prepares and studies the written material, then relies on testing procedures and instructions to compete with his/her peers equally. The candidate completes the examination process to the best of his ability, heads for home to be with their family, and hangs their hat with the confidence that the test will be graded fairly and equitably. |
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| But today’s atmosphere is filled with utter desperation and a sense of fear that ones’ future is akin to dangling perilously on a tightrope while watching it slowly unravel before your eyes.
Forget about the Administrations’ Mission Statement that we are all family, filled with love, hugs and high fives. How about a little respect? Respect not only for the individual, but their rights and intelligence as well. Grading for the promotional process has always been one-sided. They grade you. Let us now just take one moment of our time to grade those, whether for the lack of time, good judgment, interest, care or possibly just to save a buck, have created so much apprehension, anxiety and angst among the candidates. First there is the Civil Service who has recused itself as the plinth that once supported the columns of a great structure known as the MERIT SYSTEM. Then there is the Human Resources Director who habitually aligns his or her self with Civil Service to insure us, rhetorically of course, that the MERIT SYSTEM actually exists. They jointly, knowingly and effectively, have dismantled the structure to its’ present state. A shack in the slums of Calcutta looks and smells better. And finally, there is the Administration, the Human Resources Department and the Fire Exam Unit. Once again, is a little respect too much to ask for? The most important issue within the SFFD, bar none, is the promotional process. It has reached its’ lowest point. They failed. Certainly there are other issues of importance that require discussion; MOU negotiations, the merger, vacation and vacancy lists, supplemental appropriations for Fire Houses that are in disrepair, an H-2 Firefighter entry examination, and of course allegations of misconduct surrounding the key committee for the first Fire Scenes Simulation. The list seems endless at times, but they all pale in recent attempts to conduct open and honest promotional examinations. |
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