Commission approves narrower firefighter recruitment pool, ends year-round NTN acceptance

The Delaware City Civil Service Commission on May 7 approved an update to the 2023 firefighter EMT/paramedic recruitment process that narrows the pool invited for agility testing from 60 to 30 and discontinues year-round acceptance of National Testing Network (NTN) scores.

Fire Chief Pyle and staff told the commission the department historically invited 30 candidates to the agility test and that the larger 60-person invites created multiple days of agility testing without significantly changing who advanced. Chief Pyle said the department has "good historical track record of 30 people being that magic number" and recommended returning to that standard to streamline the process.

Chief Pyle also explained the change to NTN score acceptance. The department has seen candidates submit NTN scores right after a department test and then wait months for any follow-up; some candidates were hired elsewhere in the interim. Discontinuing year-round NTN acceptance narrows score acceptance to active recruitment cycles and reduces candidate confusion and staff workload.

Commission discussion noted the workload difference for HR between inviting 60 and inviting 30 candidates. The commission voted to accept the update (motion by Mr. Early; second by Vice Chair Santos). Roll-call votes recorded Mr. Hurley: yes; Vice Chair Santos: yes; Chairman Ripka: yes.

Staff said other aspects of the recruitment process remain unchanged and that the change should reduce administrative burden while aligning scoring windows with active recruitment.