FDNY to give all NYC residents extra bonus points on entry exam in ‘slap in the face’ to heroes
Joining the FDNY just got easier for city residents, who will now be granted the same bonus points on the firefighter exam as disabled military veterans or those whose parents were killed in the line of duty — a “slap in the face” to heroes, critics told The Post.
A scoring change on the upcoming firefighter exam has doubled the “bonus points” for Big Apple residents, from five to 10, as a way to “expand the entry-level pipeline” of black and Hispanic candidates, according to the FDNY’s chief diversity and inclusion officer, Kwame Cooper.
Candidates will get the 10 extra points if they earned a diploma or GED from an NYC public or private high school, which is one way to prove residency.
They need not be current residents to apply, but once hired they must live in NYC or neighboring counties.
Military veterans get five points.
Disabled veterans get 10 points.
And those who had a parent or sibling killed in the line of duty as a city firefighter, cop, or medic, or one who died from illness linked to work on the World Trade Center rescue effort get 10 points of “legacy credit.”
Candidates may qualify for bonus points in all categories.
Veterans and legacy candidates can also collect the 10 NYC residency points.
With thousands of firefighter hopefuls, many will score the maximum 100 points on the multiple-choice exam.
Bonus points can make the difference between landing a seat in the Fire Academy instead of on the waiting list.
Insiders complained about giving the same extra credit to locals as to heroes injured while serving the country and to offspring of the fallen who follow in their footsteps.
“Offering 10 points for applicants who attend a New York City high school gives a disproportionate advantage over the sons and daughters whose parents made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty and the military veterans who served this country, protecting the rights and freedoms of all Americans,” James Brosi, president of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, told The Post.
“It’s a slap in the face to those who have sacrificed so much for all of us,” a retired firefighter agreed.
The FDNY referred questions to the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, which gives civil-service exams.
The scoring change was made “in consultation with” the FDNY, and “was an initiative of the mayor’s office,” said DCAS spokesman Dan Kastanis, adding that the 10 bonus points for NYC residency was first used on the police officer exam in 2021, and on the sanitation worker exam in 2022.
“We encourage not only local New Yorkers to apply, but continue to welcome veterans, our disabled veterans, and those who qualify for legacy credits to join our ranks,” Kastanis said.
“It’s a change we stand by as we continue to succeed in lowering unemployment and bringing jobs to the residents of this city.”
The city has been under a court order to boost the hiring of blacks and Hispanics since 2011, when it settled a race discrimination lawsuit for $98 million.
Cooper, who was appointed by Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh in September 2022, recommended the five additional residency points as one way to help diversify the FDNY, according to court records.
The change was endorsed by lawyer Mark S. Cohen, FDNY’s “diversity monitor,” who was appointed by Brooklyn federal judge Nicholas Garaufis in 2011 to oversee efforts to hire more minorities.
Cohen has since collected tens of millions of dollars in fees, and the city has spent millions on recruitment.
The FDNY has made progress.
A decade ago, 91 percent of the department’s firefighters and officers were white.
As of last month, 65% of the city’s 8,387 firefighters were white, 19% Hispanic, and 11.8% black, according to Cohen.
The next city firefighter exam — the first since 2017 — is set to begin Jan. 31.
Applications are open now until Aug. 9.
