In another in a long line of hiring discrimination rulings against the Chicago Fire Department, a federal appeals court on Monday ruled in favor of female paramedics in striking down a physical performance test used by the city to hire paramedics for over a decade.
The decision in the sex discrimination lawsuit, Ernst v. City of Chicago, overturns federal district court verdicts in 2014 and 2015 finding the city’s use of the test did not discriminate against female applicants. “The physical entrance exam . . . risks cementing unfairness into Chicago’s job-application process,” the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals said in siding with the paramedics.
The Fire Department has been mired in litigation over racially and sexually discriminatory hiring practices for decades.
“We are disappointed with the court’s ruling and will continue to vigorously defend this suit,” city Law Department spokesman Bill McCaffrey said Monday.