by JONATHAN LEMIRE
The Fire Department yesterday touted a significant jump in the number of minority applicants even as its two major unions clashed over a change to the physical exam. Long criticized for being overwhelmingly white, the FDNY believes its unprecedented multimillion-dollar recruitment campaign to attract more black, Hispanic and Asian firefighter candidates has paid off. Of the 22,827 candidates who have applied to the department, 35.5% are minorities, up from 23.2% during the 2002 recruitment drive, Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta testified before the City Council. The FDNY is 91% white. "We have made substantial progress," Scoppetta said, "and we will continue to do everything possible to ensure that minority and female applicants are prepared for the exam." As of yesterday, 17.7% of applicants are Hispanic and 15.5% are African-American. Women make up fewer than 4% of the candidates. The application deadline is today. "The department's efforts have been better, but we have a long way to go," said Paul Washington, president of the Vulcan Society, which represents the city's black firefighters. "Now we need to actually get more minorities on the job." Although the written portion of the exam still will be scored numerically, the physical now will be graded pass or fail - setting off a debate among union leaders about whether the change could hinder minority candidates, who often score better on the physical section. Previously, the numeric scores from both the physical and written components were combined. "This change will not lead to more minority firefighters, and that means the department's efforts are a failure," said Steve Cassidy, head of the Uniformed Firefighters Association. But Pete Gorman, head of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, supported the new test, which is used in many U.S. cities.
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