Civil Service Commission Minutes - 08/24/2012MINUTES OF THE FIREFIGHTERS AND POLICE OFFICERS'
CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION
August 24, 2012
Present:
Penny Miller, Chair
Carol DuBray
Jim Heiman
Tammy Guerra, Civil Service Director §
Manuel Borrego, Interim Police Chief §
Laura Drury, Deputy Police Chief §
Earl Foster, Fire Chief §
Julia Vasquez, First Assistant City Attorney §
Dave Goodrich, Human Resources Generalist §
Ramona Coln, Recording Secretary §
Larry Wilkinson, Il, Firefighter
Jared Raschke, Firefighter
Brent Womack, Firefighter
Trent Mays, Firefighter
Justin Berardi, Firefighter
1. CALL TO ORDER
Commission Members
City Staff
Wichita Falls Fire Department
The meeting was called to order at 10:00 a.m. by Commissioner Penny Miller.
2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES (JULY 19, 2012)
Carol DuBray moved, seconded by Jim Heiman, that the minutes of July 19, 2012 be
approved. The motion carried.
3. REVIEW APPEALS OF PROMOTIONAL EXAMINATION FOR FIRE
EQUIPMENT OPERATOR
Question No. 50. Appealed by Firefighter Justin Berardi
Mr. Berardi chose answer "A." He assumed the word "choked" contained in that answer
was a misspelling of the word "chocked." He would like this answer to also be accepted as
correct, noting there were several misspellings throughout the test. Commissioner DuBray asked
if the words are purposefully misspelled. Ms. Guerra said the City pays a third -party vendor to
develop the test, and cannot answer that question. Commissioner Heiman cautioned the
examinees not to make assumptions about the intent of the questions; they should be taken at
face value. Commissioner DuBray moved to accept both answers as correct. Commissioner
Heiman seconded the motion. The motion carried, with Chairman Miller dissenting.
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Wichita Falls Fire Department
The meeting was called to order at 10:00 a.m. by Commissioner Penny Miller.
2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES (JULY 19, 2012)
Carol DuBray moved, seconded by Jim Heiman, that the minutes of July 19, 2012 be
approved. The motion carried.
3. REVIEW APPEALS OF PROMOTIONAL EXAMINATION FOR FIRE
EQUIPMENT OPERATOR
Question No. 50. Appealed by Firefighter Justin Berardi
Mr. Berardi chose answer "A." He assumed the word "choked" contained in that answer
was a misspelling of the word "chocked." He would like this answer to also be accepted as
correct, noting there were several misspellings throughout the test. Commissioner DuBray asked
if the words are purposefully misspelled. Ms. Guerra said the City pays a third -party vendor to
develop the test, and cannot answer that question. Commissioner Heiman cautioned the
examinees not to make assumptions about the intent of the questions; they should be taken at
face value. Commissioner DuBray moved to accept both answers as correct. Commissioner
Heiman seconded the motion. The motion carried, with Chairman Miller dissenting.
Civil Service Commission Minutes August 24, 2012 2
Question No. 69. Appealed by Firefighter Jared Raschke.
Mr. Raschke said this is an "except" question, and that the two factors referred to in
answer "D" are not identified. He chose "D" as his answer, because he chooses the odd - looking
answer with this type of question. Commissioner Heiman remarked that answer "C" is not an
option in the study guide, so it would be a logical exception. The question is almost straight from
the text. Commissioner DuBray agreed, adding that 94% of the examinees chose "C" as the
answer. She moved to uphold the answer key. Seconded by Commissioner Heiman, the
motion unanimously carried.
Question No. 80. Appealed by Firefighter Jared Raschke.
Mr. Raschke believes the Operations Officer would be responsible for all of the activities
listed as possible answers. Therefore, there is no incorrect answer to this except -type question.
Commissioner DuBray opined that the text is very clear, and 94% of the examinees correctly
answered the question. She moved to uphold the answer key. Seconded by Commissioner
Heiman, the motion unanimously carried.
Question No. 88. Appealed by Firefighter Justin Berardi
Mr. Berardi said "D" was the accepted answer, but he feels it is incorrect because the
word "complaint" was used instead of "complainant." He wants the question thrown out.
Commissioner DuBray said that although the word is misspelled, the answer is clear enough for
the examinees to get the intent. Mr. Berardi said there are a lot of misspelled words in the exams,
and it makes test - taking more difficult. Chairman Miller agreed that misspelled words are a
distraction, and this needs to be addressed with the third -party vendor. The question is whether
the misspelling is significant enough to cause a person to choose the wrong answer.
Commissioner DuBray moved to retain the answer key. Seconded by Commissioner
Heiman, the motion unanimously carried.
4. REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF MODIFICATIONS TO THE CIVIL SERVICE
COMMISSION RULES AND REGULATIONS
Ms. Guerra stated that some of the requested rules changes revolve around Ergometrics
testing, while others are proposed to make the printed text match the actual process. She asked
Interim Police Chief Manuel Borrego to expound on those changes.
Chief Borrego said one requested change would correct the order in which the applicants
go through the process, by moving the conditional offer of employment to before the initiation of
the background check. Until that conditional offer is extended, questions concerning an
applicant's medical history cannot be addressed; however, those issues need to be addressed
early in the process.
Another proposed change concerns the Chief's interview. In actuality, this interview is
conducted immediately before the polygraph and the medical. However, it is listed in the rules as
occurring after.
Commissioner DuBray moved to accept the proposed changes in Section 143.024.
Seconded by Commissioner Heiman, the motion unanimously carried.
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Civil Service Commission Minutes August 24, 2012
Commissioner DuBray then referred to the requested changes to the physical agility test
standards. Chief Borrego said they currently use Cooper standard, the most recognized in
industry on physical fitness. In order to stay within the 30 to 40 percentile, the following changes
are requested:
o Vertical jump — reduce from 16" to 15"
o 300 meter run — reduce from 67 seconds to 65.4 seconds
o One - minute mile — increase to 15 minutes 20 seconds
o Weightlifting — change to 24 push -ups in one minute
Commissioner DuBray moved to accept these proposed changes. Seconded by
Commissioner Heiman, the motion unanimously carried.
5. REPORT FROM FIRE CHIEF
Chief Foster reminded the Commission that he reported quite a few vacancies in July; at
present, the City is in the process of hiring an Academy. This morning, he was approved to
announce that Captain Jon Reese will replace retiring Assistant Fire Chief Bill Weske beginning
September 22. This promotion for Captain Reese will result in subsequent promotions to captain,
lieutenant, and driver.
6. REPORT FROM POLICE CHIEF
Chief Borrego said the Department has 14 new recruits on the street in the FTO program.
However, the Department will have nine vacancies in September with the retirements of three
sergeants. There is a test in place to promote to those positions. The Department also has two
officers off on long -term military leave.
7. ADJOURN
The meeting adjourned at 10:30 a.m.
Penny Miller, Chairman
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