Fire Captain

2015 Promotional Examination Announcement Bulletin (Re-announced)

The Fire Captain commands one or more firefighting companies at fires and other emergencies and provides direction and supervision to subordinates including Firefighter(s), Heavy Equipment Operator(s) and Fire Lieutenant(s).  The Fire Captain leads, trains, inspects, schedules and evaluates subordinate personnel.  In addition, the Fire Captain may be required to act in place of a Battalion Chief.

• Directs and participates in the firefighting, emergency medical and other field operations of a company;
• Supervises and mentors personnel in quarters and at the scene of an alarm, including planning, scheduling, organizing, maintaining discipline and morale, and training;
• Establishes house policies in compliance with departmental rules and regulations;
• Oversees the upkeep of the engine house and property;
• Develops and maintains reports and records;  
• Promotes positive public relations through community involvement and superior customer service; and
• Ensures personnel are performing their duties in accordance with the department’s rules, regulations, standard operating procedures, standard operating guidelines and code of conduct.

Reasonable accommodations requested by qualified individuals with disabilities will be made in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, as amended by the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008

1. Applicants must have served continuously as a Fire Lieutenant in the Milwaukee Fire Department for at least three (3) years as of December 8, 2015. 

Continuous service includes:

• time spent on military leave or duty disability;
• unpaid absences of 30 days or fewer for non-disciplinary reasons, including educational leave, or leaves of absence related to physical disability, including sick leave, or leaves which qualify under the Family and Medical Leave Act;
• absences of 5 cumulative 8-hour days or fewer or two (2) cumulative twenty-four hour working days or fewer for disciplinary reasons, however the applicant must have the required years of actual service.

A substitution may be made for a maximum of one (1) year of required experience in exchange for one of the following: 

• Sixty or more academic credits from an accredited college or university applicable to a degree.  College transcripts are required and must be submitted via email no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, October 16, 2015 to krurban@milwaukee.gov. Student copies are acceptable. If transcripts are not received by the October 16, 2015 deadline, credit will not be given for this substitution.
• Active certification for performing paramedic services for the Milwaukee Fire Department at time of application.

    2.    Licensed by the State of Wisconsin and authorized to practice as an EMT-B by the Milwaukee Fire Department at time of application, including all refresher requirements.

    3.    Completion of the MFD Professional Development Program for Captain is highly desirable.

IMPORTANT:  Future examinations may require academic credits applicable to a degree to be eligible to participate in the examination process, and will require completion of the MFD Professional Development Program prior to promotion.

The online application, Orientation and Preparation Guide, Reading List and Background Qualifications (BQ) Document Instructions and Guidelines are available at http://jobaps.com/mil.  Candidates are responsible for ensuring that the online application is submitted by the deadline of Friday, October 2, 2015.  The FPC is not responsible for applications not submitted by the deadline.  Please note that all correspondence regarding the selection process will be sent via email using the email address that corresponds to the applicant’s profile in the Fire & Police Commission’s online application program (JOBAPS); it is imperative that applicants maintain an updated profile, including current email addresses, in the JOBAPS program to ensure all correspondence regarding testing dates and results is received by the applicants.  

The Orientation and Preparation Guide, Reading List and Background Qualifications (BQ) Document Instructions and Guidelines are available at: mint.milwaukee.gov/MFD-CL.   This is the only site where this information will be available beyond the Friday, October 2, 2015 online application deadline.  

The Background Qualifications (BQ) document is required and must be submitted in the specified format (see sample) via email to krurban@milwaukee.gov no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, October 16, 2015.

EXAMINATION COMPONENTS

The examination process will consist of two components: a written multiple choice test and an assessment center.  The assessment center will include a fire scene exercise, background qualifications presentation and an oral interview. 

The final score for the purpose of ranking on the eligible list will be comprised of the following components:   

            Written Test                20%

            Assessment Center    75%

            Seniority                       5%

                                               100%                                                                                                            

Candidates must attain a passing score on the written test to be scheduled for the assessment center and must attain a passing score on each portion of the assessment center to be placed on the eligible list. Promotion is contingent upon passing a drug screen. The eligible list resulting from this examination will remain in effect for two years unless rescinded or extended by the Fire and Police Commission.

The written test is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, December 9, 2015.  The assessment center is tentatively scheduled during the week of January 11, 2016.  Testing may not be scheduled on all days.  Qualified candidates will receive email notification that they are invited to attend and will be notified of the specific test date, time and location.  Candidates who pass the written test will be notified of the specific date, time and place of the assessment center. 

Applicants will be notified of any changes in schedule of either the written test or assessment center. Unless required by law, the Fire and Police Commission will not provide alternative test administrations.  Applicants are responsible for attending all phases of the job selection process at the time and place designated by the Fire and Police Commission. Any applicant who will be unavailable for one or more portions of this examination due to military service or training and wishes to request an accommodation must submit such a request in writing to the attention of Kristin Urban (krurban@milwaukee.gov) no later than Friday, December 4, 2015.