Nepotism in state agency proving problematic
By Jim Sanders, Sacramento Bee
The state agency that decides whether teachers are fit for California classrooms has a record of hiring workers with family ties.
Last year, the employee roster included two sets of siblings, one father-daughter pair, and three instances in which the child of an existing employee was hired temporarily as a student assistant.
A recent audit found 40 percent of employees surveyed said that hiring and promotion at the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing are compromised by family relationships or favoritism – with 19 percent saying it occurs often.
The issue, one of many facing the commission at a legislative hearing this week, involves something that state agencies are not required to track: How often do they hire friends or relatives of employees?
Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, in a letter to the commission, said the survey found hiring concerns that “strongly suggest the need for a shift to a more professional culture in the organization.”
Commission employees provided state auditors with the names of 24 past or present colleagues who they contend are related to each other – a number agency leaders say represents only a small percentage of the 160-member staff.
Yet 43 percent of respondents at the commission said they fear retaliation if they file a grievance or formal complaint.