If you were thinking about applying for a position with the Los Angeles Fire Department, you might want to put that on hold.
Turns out that hiring and recruiting at one of the largest fire departments in the United States has stopped – for now.
The action was ordered by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Thursday. The mayor expressed concern over mismanagement and nepotism in the way the LAFD has been hiring its employees.
“I have determined that the Fire Department’s recruiting process is fatally flawed,” said Garcetti in a statement. “Reforming the Fire Department is a key part of my back to basis agenda and the integrity of the recruiting process is vital to ensuring the department responds quickly, is technologically advanced and reflects the city it serves in the future.”
This comes after it was recently revealed that thousands of candidates who passed a written test were not considered for a training class because their paperwork was not received in the first 60 seconds of the filling period, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The LA Times also reports that nearly 25% of the 70 recruits that were hired last spring were related to LAFD firefighters.
An investigation on the hiring procedures that were used is now underway.
Mayor Garcetti also also ordered a top nonprofit corporation to make recommendations on how to fix the problem in the next few months.
No word yet on when the LAFD will begin to hire again.
