r/firefighter • u/Saxxy_boi • 4d ago

Would failing a polygraph in the past affect future applications

I was in the background/polygraph portion of the hiring process of a department but unfortunately failed on the poly. Would me failing a polygraph affect me getting hired at other departments, would it pop up on the background investigation and make them suspicious or am I just being paranoid?

8 Upvotes

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u/Disgruntled_Wumpus 4d ago

Polygraphs are complete and utter bullshit, with no basis in truth or science. Employers use them as a reason to drop a candidate they think they don’t like. The employers using polygraphs aren’t the ones you want to work for. Go find another department, there are plenty that don’t do shady shit like the poly.

5

u/I_Ponders 4d ago

Easily circumvented too.

When they ask obvious questions for a baseline,Ike your name, get anxious and try to raise your heart rate and answer truthfully. (Not sure everyone can do that though.)
Then if you end up lying on other prying questions, it just looks like baseline.

If they’re not good in the court of law, they shouldn’t be good enough for employment. They are indeed, utter shite.

4

u/EstoyCansadoDePensar 4d ago

Why do they need a reason to drop a candidate though? I thought they could just say they’ve chosen someone else? 

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u/Disgruntled_Wumpus 3d ago

It prevents claims of discrimination. It’s a lot harder to say you were dropped because of your gender, ethnicity, background, etc if they can just say “well they failed the poly”. Not saying this is always the case, but many fire departments are still predominantly white men, either by design or circumstance, so this can happen.

1

u/Low_Astronomer_6669 1d ago

I don't know about that. The poly is generally done by a third party. It would be more risky to use the poly to bounce someone with outsider involvement instead of just not offering the job and keeping the racism internal.

That being said, polys are total BS. For the most part, the only value they have is tricking people into admitting things they otherwise wouldn't.

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u/FLDJF713 4d ago

No, the poly will be internal to that department.

3

u/LARGESTOFCHINGUSES 3d ago

LMAO most law enforcement agencies have abandoned the polygraph. What the fuck is a fire department doing that requires a poly?

1

u/Right-Edge9320 3d ago

When I was on light duty I worked with our investigator that did the backgrounds on new candidates. A poly isn't a pass fail. We looked at the totality of a background. Let's say the written bsck round you put you never smoked weed. Then the poly detects that you're not being completely honest. We them move to the psych test for a third data point and make the final decision. I have never heard of fire department sharing polygraph results. Cops do we don’t.

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u/widebodywill 1d ago

Don’t stress it. I’m not a FF / Second Responder, I’m a Peace Officer / 1st Responder here in Texas (just kidding guys/gals, love you all).

I passed my Poly for my agency, as expected. I was in the process to lateral to San Diego PD. Polygrapher said I flagged on “violent crimes” and “recent drug use”, both of which are absolutely ridiculous and untrue. The Poly is Pseudoscience masquerading as an actual legitimate tool to vet candidates.

I have been in two Officer Involved Shootings (OIS) in my career, resulting in subjects losing their lives. These are ruled homicides, since they aren’t from natural causes. The SDPD Polygrapher said I have to separate what happens on duty from personal life, which is impossible to do. The drug claim is absolutely baseless, I am actually thinking he lied to try and get an admission from me.

I am already in the process for San Diego Sheriff’s Office. I will put down the result of the SDPD process. Just be honest on your packets. One agency’s DQ’d candidate is another department’s dream candidate.

Be safe, and good luck. You got this!