About Those Naughty NorCo Emails

Back in September, two NorCo Register of Wills employees were summoned to the Human (or is it Inhumane?) Relations Office on the oxygen-deprived Third Floor, with one hour's notice. In an email, they were told they could be losing their job. And they did. I saw one of them on her way to the firing squad. Were they stealing? Nah. Excessive absenteeism. Nope. It was something far more sinister than mere theft.

Naughty emails.

That's right. Two single mothers were shown the door because, from time to time, they exchanged a few naughty emails with each other and one or two ex-boyfriends. No employees were harassed. Nobody was threatened. But some of those emails were downright vulgar and racy, and we'll have none of that in the People's Republic of Northampton County. Never mind that a cabinet-level official has been carrying on with one of his subordinates for the past few years, with the full knowledge of the County Executive. That's different. We'll have no naughty emails with the hired help, unless it's to or from General Petraeus.

Now you might think these women are independently wealthy, and were just working for pin money. Actually, they both have families to support, and were working second jobs to feed and clothe them. That meant nothing to the County, even though the words "justice" and "mercy" are proudly proclaimed on the County seal.  Union grievances were summarily denied. Pouring salt into the wound, County officials denied claims for unemployment compensation, too.

So for the past two months, with little income from part-time jobs, these women have been trying to make ends meet.

Now we all know naughty emails are a bad thing. Very bad, indeed. Especially for Directors of the CIA. But a firing offense? For courthouse clerks? After letting it go on for two years, without saying a word? This punishment just doesn't fit the crime.

While these ladies are being crucified, some corrections officers at Northampton County jail are charging inmates $100 a pop for tobacco pouches, according to a recent civil rights lawsuit settled by the County for $200,000. Funny how no investigation has gone into that mess.

This type of uneven treatment, more than anything else, is why unions prosper in a workplace like Northampton County Government. Employees will flock to them. Once they get their foot in the door, we're stuck with them. Northampton County is stuck with eleven.

But are they worth it?

You'd think AFSCME, the union representing these workers, would be on a holy tear. After all, it went all the way to the Supreme Court for some Philly union dude engaged in sexual harassment on the job. But not for these single mothers. AFSCME's business agent, himself a former corrections officer, only reluctantly filed a grievance. He dragged his feet about filing a request for arbitration. He's done nothing about unemployment compensation.

Some union.

Enter the Evil Lawyers.

Thankfully, these women had the good sense to hire Easton attorneys Brian and Colin Monahan, a father and son team. After a 4 1/2 hour hearing last week for one of these two woman, unemployment compensation has been granted.

During this lengthy hearing, Brian Monahan established that, contrary to what has been claimed, the County's "electronic resource policy" does permit workers to use the Internet for personal business, so long as it is not abused. It is true that a first-time violator can be terminated.

Director of Court Services Archie D'Isidore decided to conduct an "investigation" into the private business of these two ladies and God knows who else. For over 2 years, he snooped through their private emails. While collecting their emails, he never once put them on notice. In fact, he actually gave them positive performance action reports. No warnings. No restrictions on email.

D'Isisdore, incidentally, is the rocket scientist who recommended one of the administration's pets as the new Register of Wills. She was named over a Deputy with 13 years of experience. That Deputy had the backing of both the courts and the retiring Register of Wills.

D'Isidore explained that he needed those 2 years to show a pattern of Internet abuse. But Referee Gary Wardecki disagreed. "The employer's failure to take any disciplinary action for two years indicates the actions were not considered misconduct."

And they were't. What D'Idsidore really did was bide his time until the retiring Register of Wills, Dot Cole, was gone. Then he lowered the boom, launching a pre-emptive strike against two woman who had noticed some of his own antics. This includes bringing his own ex-secretary in on weekends to get OT to do their work.

Since the County is self-insured, what this ruling means is that County tax revenue will be used to pay two Register of Wills employees to sit on their asses. And when they get re-instated, and you can take that to the bank, it will mean even more money and attorney fees.

Brilliant.

It gets better. The County may have opened itself up to a civil rights action. Courts are increasingly concerned about protecting the privacy rights of public sector employees. In fact, the Commonwealth Court has thus far blocked attempts by reporters to obtain teacher home addresses, even though that information is available in most phone books. Canada's Supreme Court has also recently ruled that employees do have privacy rights, even with workplace computers.

So do I condone naughty emails on the job? Not at all. It's just horrible. I'll bet nobody does it. Those few who do are shot on the spot.  But you don't wait two years and then unload the hammer. Emails to family members and loved ones, incidentally, should really be above scrutiny. Anybody who spends 2 years looking at those, with his door closed, is just downright creepy.

Where has County Executive John Stoffa been during this nonsense?  Obviously, he supports the termination. But to fire single mothers for violations of some prudish code, while acquiescing in a cabinet-level official who is involved with a subordinate, is simply unconscionable. He knows this. But with top-notch cabinet officials like John Conklin and Vic Mazziotti gone, he's getting bad advice from people who know nothing about County government or, more importantly, people.

It would be one thing if his poor judgment affected only him. But this will cost all of us in the end, to say nothing of what it is doing to courthouse morale.

When John Stoffa was first elected, he was heralded as the anti-Reibman. But with an indifference to the County workforce, coupled with a Budget that dips too deeply into the reserve, he's become just like him.

Blogger's Note: I scanned the Unemployment Compensation ruling, redacting the name of the employee.