2022-01 Department of Human Resources Hiring Practices Follow-up

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Monitoring and Oversight Condition and Cause DHR did not monitor hiring department's interview and selection process to ensure compliance with the merit principle. Effect of the Condition The County did not ensure uniform and transparent hiring practices. Recommendation 3 "We recommend the Department of Human Resources develop and implement policies and procedures that address monitoring and oversight of countywide interviewing and selection processes to deter, detect, and prevent questionable hiring practices and ensure compliance with applicable laws, rules, and regulations." Department Action To meet this recommendation, DHR established a process to review interview packets to ensure hiring departments are following employment laws including lawful and non-discrimination practices, countywide interview and selection procedures, and the merit principle. From October 2018 to November 2021, DHR reviewed twenty-two hiring department's interview packets for: • Position's information sheet with instructions to the panelists • Interview questions with model answers/concepts • Assessment exercise(s) with criteria for rating applicants • Rating sheets DHR disclosed the following exceptions: • DHR reviewed all County departments except for the Office of Management because there was no civil service request to fill to test. • A review of Mass Transit Agency interview packets is past due as of December 30, 2021. Audit Activity To verify completed status, we reviewed all twenty-two interview packets or 100% of the testing population, and found no exceptions. We identified opportunities to further strengthen monitoring and oversight of the County's hiring process. DHR should continue ongoing monitoring of all department's interview packets as a best practice and address the following in their rules, policy, and procedures: • Adopt monitoring and oversight procedures • Define nepotism • Define conflict of interest • Define familial relationships including Hanai, relationships. A term used in the Hawaiian culture that refers to the informal adoption of one person by another • Establish a policy addressing nepotism and conflict of interest • Disclose any potential conflict of interest on the interview panelist acknowledgment form Status: Completed 9 Status of Recommendations