By EMS1 Staff
NEW YORK — FDNY EMTs are facing forced overtime shifts next week as nearly half of their team plans to take the city’s firefighter exam.
Over 1,500 EMS personnel will take the firefighter entrance exam Monday, Dec. 16. As a result, FDNY EMS providers will have to cover their staff shortage by working overtime, reported the New York Daily News.
For one Bronx station, 42 of the station’s 86 paramedics and EMTs will be taking the exam.
The department has already alerted those not taking the exam they may be working extra shifts; the department only forces mandatory overtime during “significant conditions.”
The exam is only open to EMS providers; those who score a 70 or higher are fast-tracked into the FDNY — an advantage over outside applicants. Many applicants are driven by the increase in salary, which can reach $100,000 after five years as a firefighter.