Another Class Certification: New York State and Promotion Testing
Update to this posting: I located an NPR interview about the case; if you are interested, you can listen to the interview here.
According to this press release, a lawsuit apparently targeting New York State’s promotion practices was just recently granted class certification. The lawsuit will potentially impact tens of thousands of African American and Hispanic state employees.
The specific practice that is identified here is a test. It is a kind of multiple-choice test.
The lead attorney, Willie E. Gary has an interesting website, and indicates that he has “won more than 150 cases valued well in excess of a million dollars each.”
An internet search revealed little else about the case, but I was able to find powerpoint slides discussing the test that appears to be the focus of the case. Specifically, the presentation, made in 2000, provides a detailed description of
what may be the test at issue, along with sample items, and some information on the validity of the test. I did not see any information there on adverse impact against minorities.
The press release notes that other states use similar tests, so this may mark the launch of other, similar charges in elsewhere.
Read the press release here.
Since there is such a well-know racial achievement gap in the public schools, as demonstrated by performance on standardized tests, it is not surprising that any type of written multiple choice test has a disparate impact.
That’s not in any way a racist comment. I in no way believe it has to be that way. Rather, it’s an indictment of the public education system, and in particular, funding of public education by local property taxes, which guarantees a cycle of poverty, as the poorest neighborhoods have the poorest schools.
Wouldn’t our money be better spent on education than on making trial lawyers rich?
The situational component of the test sounds interesting, but still seems to take the form of a written multiple choice test. Some people are better test-takers than others. To some extent that’s a learned skill independent of what the test seeks to measure.
A quick look at that powerpoint is enough for me. This test passes the George standard of validation: a reasonable effort was made by qualified professionals to measure job-related skills. Period. End of inquiry.
Now, would it be smart to look for ways to test for those skills that are less dependent on the ability to take written tests? Perhaps. But what the state has done is not illegal (if I’m on the Supreme Court) unless it had discriminatory intent.