It does seem a bit odd...however, and I say this with all the seriousness in the world....the people who do well on the promotionals usually ARE the ones who've excelled in the past, have been great firefighters and employees, and have the work ethic, experience, and education to excel.
Like I said, every so often a "test taker" (someone who's just naturally good at taking tests) slips through, but their performance at the new rank shows. That is the reason for "probation" on the first year in a new rank. For example if a new Captain promotes and does a terrible job, gets bad reviews, doesn't do well on their new rank quarterly tests, or can't perform....they are demoted back to their prior rank due to not passing probation.
For those outside the fire service, it may not seem like a good system...but in the end it really is.
But note I said a good system...not perfect.
Cheers!
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