NAACP, black firefighters argue hostile work environment in lawsuit against Jacksonville

Jacksonville.com

Steve Patterson

Jacksonville is being sued by the NAACP and a black firefighters group who argue the city’s fire department treats blacks unfairly in hiring, job assignment and transfers and allows a racially hostile work environment. The suit, which expands on discrimination claims brought last year by the U.S. Justice Department, was filed Thursday afternoon in federal court. The Justice suit focused on promotion tests, saying there was a “pattern or practice” that disadvantaged black firefighters. The NAACP and the Jacksonville Brotherhood of Firefighters intervened in that suit in August.
The new court case argues black firefighters have other obstacles working against them. The suit argues disproportionate numbers of black firefighters are disciplined more often and assigned to less-desirable jobs in the rescue or prevention divisions instead of to fire suppression jobs. It argues the hiring process works against blacks, too, saying would-be firefighters have to spend months of time and up to $2,900 studying at a Southside center to be eligible, and the time and cost is a factor in a city where blacks are more prone to live in poverty. City General Counsel Cindy Laquidara said the city hoped to resolve the dispute this year without going to trial.

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