Clarity

I called the two contacts the officer had given me, and they gave me an earful on the “Napoleon Complex” the director displayed on a regular basis. He was just as the officer described, “a political hack.” They felt lucky to find other jobs in the state government, and felt the administrators’ job working for him was a big mistake on their part. They felt it could have been a “career killer.” They thanked God they could move into another position unscathed by any controversies. The director was cutting the department’s budget on a regular basis and expecting more from the employees each time he cut. The most controversial policy he implemented, denied what he termed “exempt employees” overtime pay, and that was headed to court. The employees were denied “on-call” pay as well. He ended losing both in court, and cost the department over a million dollars in back pay. These labor relations incidents were swept under the rug. They were not brought up in my interview. The state would hide the payout, and not reflect it in the department’s budget.

I returned the email to the nurses with a “thank you” but “no thank you response. ” I also explained to them my reasons, and I believed the director would not hire me anyway. He had final say on that decision. The response I received from them was heartfelt. They wanted me not to pull my application. They insisted I stay in the running. The committee would submit my name as the chosen candidate, and wait for the director’s response. They were under the impression, the committee’s decision was the prevailing one, and the director would only give them feedback on their choice. They asked that I just sit back and see how this develops. I had no problem with their request. In the meantime, I spoke with my boss about the interview process and what the state trooper had said about our warden. He agreed that our warden was a good person to work for, but he understood my wanting to get into management, and utilize my credentials. He also felt I could use my skills to enhance the Horticulture program in the prison school. He would support my decision either way.

I waited over two weeks to finally receive a response from the civil service about my application for the Administrator’s position with Community Health. It was a standard letter of appreciation for applying, and interviewing, but also informed me a more “experienced” candidate had been selected for the position. I sent a scanned PDF of the letter to the nurses who had asked me to wait so they could see how this played out. In a couple of days I received their response. They thanked me for my patience and not dropping out sooner. They informed me the committee agreed they would never again participate in the hiring process and felt they had been lied to by the director. It did not surprise me. I then informed them of what past administrators had said about him. They were shocked. The administrator he chose to hire now would be his third in a years time. No red flags? I thanked them for their support, and wished them well. I felt they were dedicated health care professionals and I would have enjoyed working with them. But that was not to be. I had worked for bosses who had “Napoleon Complexes” and played Machiavellian games. I would never make that mistake again. On to the next chapter. TO BE CONTINUED…

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/04/10/vladimir-kara-murza-final-statement-court/ His story needs to be heard.