2022-04-08 Merit Appeals Board Minutes

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Merit Appeals Board April 8, 2022 we ask is follow the process, ring the first doorbell, and get your answer. And if it's not an appropriate answer, then elevate. So, that's what we're, again, trying to educate them or trying to achieve that curve. CHR. CABANAS: Okay. Thank you, Mr. Benner. Any other questions for Mr. Benner? Mr. Ventura, do you have any questions for Mr. Benner. MR. VENTURA: No questions. Thank you. CHR. CABANAS: Okay. Thank you, Mr. Benner, you may proceed. MR. BENNER: Sure. Thank you. Okay. So, "Recommendation" number "Y' we recommend the Department of Human Resources develop and implement policies and procedures that address monitoring and oversight of Countywide interviewing and selection process to deter, detect, and prevent questionable hiring practices and ensure compliances with applicable laws, rules, and regulations. DHR audited 22 interview packets for compliance with the Merit Principle. DHR initiated the interview packet audits in 2018. We did have a noted exception as we were doing our testing Mass Transit missed their deadline. It's our understanding that that hiring was that particular position, they were not able to proceed with that as having missed the deadline, and the mayor's office had no qualifying recruitments to test. So, to verify that status, we reviewed the process and found no exceptions other than that noted above. I should specify that for follow-up audits, we don't make additional recommendations `cause we won't do a follow-up on the follow-up for the original audit. But we did identify additional opportunities to further strengthen monitoring and oversight. Had we been—had I been involved in the initial audit, I would have offered this recommendation in addition to those at that time, which is to adopt monitoring and oversight procedures to define nepotism, define conflict of interest, define familiar relationships—including hanai relationships, establish policies addressing nepotism and conflicts of interest, disclose any potential conflict of interest on the interview panel acknowledgment form. So, we offer those proactively to the Department in the hope that that would nullify the need to do an additional audit in the future. And we consider this status, at this time, completed. All right, so "Recommendation 4"—we recommend the Department of Human Resources require individual hiring departments use the NeoGov System to track and monitoring the status of candidates during the interview and selection process. I'm accustomed to NeoGov prior to working for the County and it does carry with it a wonderful audit trail. So, I'm an advocate of that system. DHR requires all departments to conduct all Page 15