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Lottery Numbers for the Week of July 3, 2016

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Letter to the Editor: Student abroad distraught about homeland’s inaction on gun control

<p>A running gag on the &#8220;Murphy Brown&#8221; television sitcom involved a revolving door of secretaries sent by the personnel department to assist the hard-driving news anchor and title character, who quickly found each to be unsuited for the job.</p><p>Some were quirky. Others seemed crazy.</p><p>None lasted more than an episode.</p><p>In real life, as veteran Luzerne County employees probably can attest, a constant churn of people into and out of an office role is not so funny.</p><p>The county last week lost its most recent human resources director, Mark Szot, after he had served on the job for less than a month. Szot initially cited &#8220;personal reasons.&#8221; The Harveys Lake resident then admitted to a Times Leader reporter that he lied on his resume to land the $65,000-a-year position. Szot also persuaded a friend to provide a false character reference, he said, by posing as a representative of a former employer.</p><p>Even if true, the scenario wouldn&#8217;t make Szot the strangest or most pathetic character to occupy the post in the past 12 years. That distinction goes to the doggie-toting, story-concocting, shoplifting-prone Kimberli Weiland (aka Kimberli Aboyade). Hired by Luzerne County in early 2004, she first raised eyebrows by showing up at the workplace with her teacup poodle.</p><p>A Times Leader investigation then revealed Weiland had been disbarred for altering her law school transcripts, was wanted by authorities in Indiana on a shoplifting charge, and was sought by Ohio police for allegedly obstructing an investigation. Less than six months after taking the job here, she was fired. The newly unemployed Weiland continued to shoplift, victimizing a handful of Wyoming Valley stores.</p><p>Since that fiasco, Luzerne County&#8217;s various leaders slogged through a string of largely unsuccessful attempts to land a suitable, longstanding human resources director.</p><p>Two subsequent HR bosses were fired. One of them, Doug Richards, got ensnared in the region&#8217;s crackdown on public corruption and pleaded guilty to accepting a bribe. The other has a pending lawsuit against the county, alleging wrongful termination.</p><p>Two directors resigned. One split after less than a month. The other, Andrew Check, parted ways with the county after about four years, sliding into a human resources job with a private-sector firm.</p><p>Before Szot&#8217;s arrival &#8211; and sudden departure &#8211; the position had been vacant for seven months.</p><p>For credibility&#8217;s sake, county administrators need to find a motivated and well-qualified candidate to handle this key post. Perhaps it would benefit county officials to partner in this search with a human resources association, or give special attention to applicants with recent professional certifications.</p><p>A human resources director, in any workplace, typically juggles a mix of vital and sometimes delicate duties: recruitment, training, workforce safety, compensation, benefits and labor relations. He or she maintains access to sensitive personal information.</p><p>Luzerne County&#8217;s government can&#8217;t afford to entrust these tasks to an ever-changing cast of men and women. There&#8217;s nothing silly, or productive, about it.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Luzerne County Courthouse. (Pete G. Wilcox|Times Leader)</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/web1_luzcocourthouse01.jpg</photo0><caption0>Luzerne County Courthouse. (Pete G. Wilcox|Times Leader)</caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>

Our Opinion: Put a stop to revolving door at Luzerne County’s human resources office