At the same time he was forecasting lay offs and issuing dire warnings that the city couldn't afford the size of its work force, Mayor Bloomberg was also nailing down a $110,000-a-year city job for the girlfriend of one of his closet political allies, The Post has learned.
Sources said City Hall arranged the hiring of Joan Cusack, the longtime companion of Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro, right after she was bounced from the state payroll last year.
Now a manager at the Human Resources Administration, Cusack, 65, is making $19,200 more than she did as a member of the state Crime Victims Board, which went out of business last June.
The very month she was booted from the state payroll, Cusack landed an interview with HRA Commissioner Robert Doar, who promptly offered her a newly created position to manage procurement and commodity contracts.
HRA spokeswoman Connie Ress said Doar determined Cusack "had an appropriate background to do the job. Other staff interviewed her as well and agreed with this analysis."
The job was never posted, and no other candidates were interviewed.
Cusack started work on Sept. 20 -- one day before Bloomberg imposed a hiring freeze on all agencies.
Molinaro and Cusack declined comment.
There was no job opening posted.
No actual search for candidates was conducted.
And someone with connections but only oblique qualifications for the job was hired.
In Cusack's case, Bloomberg actually had the position created.
In Black's case, he had to declare Shael Polakow Suransky Black's Keeper of the Education Knowledge.
Either way, these boondoggle hirings cost the city money.
No worries though - Mayor Mike will just make sure he cuts $12,000 from NYPD and NYFD pensions and lay off a few more senior teachers.
And it will all be good.
This is a prime example of why there must be civil service protections. Imagine if they did away with last in first out and principals or managers of other city agencies had the ability to layoff who they seemed expendable. Well here it is in black and Bloomberg. This friend of a political ally of Bloomberg winds up with a job. Never posted, interviewed by the head of the agency and like magic receives the position one day before the hiring freeze. It stinks to high heaven. This is what will be the norm if LIFO and other protections are allowed to be overturned.
ReplyDeleteI was trying to dream up a snippy comment to post here, but I'm tired of posting. So maybe I'll be more thoughtful later. I'll just leave it with this - Bloomberg sucks.
ReplyDeleteI hope this example of cronyism is publicized wide and far and does some more harm to BloomBuck's agenda.
ReplyDelete