Most afternoons, the aroma of popcorn wafts through the thin air on the third floor. That's because Amy Trapp installed a popcorn machine in her office. An $800 popcorn machine that she obtained by raiding the health and wellness fund. Now taxpayers were spared the cost of this purchase. That's because it was paid for by county workers with the money taken out of their salaries for health care. Capital Blue Cross gives some of the money back to the county, which has been used in the past for gym memberships and exercise classes.
Trapp used it to buy a $800 popcorn machine.
Now in fairness, this machine was used for one day this year at NorCo's health and wellness fair. But now it's used for the third floor HR peeps.
She also used her county credit card to pay for the flights of two people from her department to Las Vegas for "training" on Neogov HR software. They stayed at the Mirage Hotel.
"I had no idea NeoGov was going to require Las Vegas training," said Controller Steve Barron, who is growing increasingly disturbed at what appears to be abuse.
Another "training" seminar was booked in New Orleans, but was canceled.
Three of her staffers were allowed to spend $862 each to purchase reception chairs outside of their offices. In the meantime, telephone receptionists in the rotunda have chairs like this:
I'm informed her office also includes new furniture, a television (there must be an HR network) and even a painting.
It certainly appears that she is causing an incredible amount of waste (let's not forget $30,000 for time clocks).
Yesterday, I filed a right-to-know to review the expenses being claimed by her, Executive John Brown and other top county officials.
She must think she is still employed by Fed Ed in Allentown.
58 comments:
That chair may be the one I vomited on after the last time I was in court for vagrancy.
Bernie you should find out how much all the office remodeling cost. I'm sure its up there. She did do the same in Atown then was the first rat off the sinking ship known as the HHS FedEd. I still don't know how she dodged the FBI to this point.
Look at Beth Twp with the free taxpayer provided coffee machine in the lobby. Heard its mostly used by their employees. Unnecessary remodeling too over at that Twp. too in the Manager offices.
She probably uses the popcorn machine to lure unsuspecting employees into her office so she can screw them over. Just like the witch in Hansel and Gretel used candy to lure unsuspecting children into the oven.
The waste is appalling. Next, she'll advocate for a kabillion dollar human services building that taxpayers can't afford. It goes on and on. And some wonder why government is despised more than roaches and AIDS. It's because government hates the governed for being cheapskates.
poor bo, spurned by another woman - but he's still got angle
Who pays for the butter?
Have any of you out there ever bought office furniture? $862 buys you 2 chairs. Not because it's being sold to a government agency, but because office furniture is built to last. The $40 chair you could buy at Staples will last you 2 years. Why was the furniture purchased? Could it be that the old stuff was worn out? As for the popcorn machine, $800 can buy you a very good one. If it is being used for morale, you could have gotten a smaller one for about $200.
Believe it or not, the chair in the photo probably costs $200-$300.
Bernie, if you think the furniture thing is bad do the same check at Lehigh Valley airport! Posh stuff in v.i.p. offices! Fat cats really take care of number 1.!!!
No wonder things are so screwed up! Too much waste!
Popcorn machine? Is she nutz? Someone will screw it up, leave it on over a weekend and will burn the courthouse down.
"Bernie you should find out how much all the office remodeling cost. I'm sure its up there."
Believe me, I am finding out.
Looks like it takes an entitled, spoiled brat government employee to know one...
The thoughts of buttery popcorn and expensive chairs makes me sad that they did away with the walking program for the courthouse. These HR workers are going to need all the exercise they can get...
"Have any of you out there ever bought office furniture? $862 buys you 2 chairs. Not because it's being sold to a government agency, but because office furniture is built to last. The $40 chair you could buy at Staples will last you 2 years. Why was the furniture purchased? Could it be that the old stuff was worn out? As for the popcorn machine, $800 can buy you a very good one. If it is being used for morale, you could have gotten a smaller one for about $200."
Let's drop the bullshit burgers. This is abuse and she needs to go. It is highly insulting and demoralizing to the taxpayer and workforce for her to be sending staffers for a trip to the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas for "training." And if we spend $862 for two chairs, government spending is completely out of whack. Those "cheap" Staples chairs last 20 years. There is no excuse for cutting out gym discounts so she can raid the health and wellness fun for a $800 popcorn machine. What is going on is obscene, but i what I'd expect from someone who thru her husband refers to the workforce as "entitled spoiled brat government employees."
Mayor Pawloski hired this woman. What else needs to be said !
BO. They didn't cut gym reimbursements. They actually are improved. Not sure who told you they were cut. I've benefited from the reimbursements.
Let's stick to what is going on and refrain from getting too personal.
5:21, there is a different plan, but it is not an improvement. It is worse according to county workers with whom I spoke.
Bernie, there should be detailed expense account recordings of all public sector accountability from top to bottom!
Well you got wrong info. It used to be max $150 a year and you had to get a stupid paper signed every time you went to the gym. Now twice a year you get up to $350 as long as you go an average of 3x a week and your gym certifies by signing no more than once every six month period. That's $700 a year. That $550 increase sounds good to me.
Funny how this money hungry, high-heel wearing, loud mouth, walks around like her crap don't stink women can buy nonsense crap and send employees to training, when the residents sit at/on furniture from 1970's. Staff can't get real training from outside professionals to cope with mental health patients coming in right and left!. What is wrong with this picture??? We complain but nothing is done. This women made my skin crawl from the first time she opened her TRAP!
Isn't that a kick in the teeth. In our department we can't even order desk blotters with a cute kitten or sunset picture on them. Plain and cheap only because we're using taxpayers dollars.
Or better yet spend 100 bucks on a new microwave and buy generic brand microwave popcorn instead!!
Touch' LOL
Sad isnt it that people work so hard to maintain that coveted 5 star rating but the residents furniture is 30+ years old and they have no money to train staff on how to handle mental health patients
There is a glut of high quality, second hand office furniture available due to consolidations and closing of offices in and around the Lehigh Valley. You can replace the worst of the existing lot with much newer chairs, desks, etc. without breaking the bank. The stuff isn't new but it isn't old either.
Aside from the blatant abuse of power the biggest problem in acting like that is she just ends up gathering contempt.
the employees will not say it aloud but she will just be considered a joke.
sadly in her mind she probably just does not get it.
one question is who has the power and the spine to straighten her out?
I seriously doubt she will do it on her own
Whoever said you get hundreds for going to gym is misinformed. Instead of a once a year reimbursement it is now 25 buck a month memberships at cost to employee at a variety of gyms that CBC approves.
well at least she didn't spend the money on worthless union pukes
@8:47. Yes there is that program but you can also get reimbursed. I ended up getting my whole membership paid so far. You are misinformed and missing out on the reimbursement.
@6:55 and @9:33 We only got an e-mail from Trapp Wednesday about Blue 365 Wednesday... we had this program from January 1. Also if you have gotten so much money back how is that possible. If you get 350 2x a year we are not even 4 months into the year. How is that possible? If you got $25.00 plus the $700 that's almost $90 a month and makes no sense. Even at just $700 a year that's $58.00 a month. That's not happening. If 200 employees did that it would be almost $140,000 per year. That would be 10% of the workforce taking part in the program and would make the plan cost prohibitive. Just sayin'!
@9:55 do your homework. It was explained at the meetings we had when they discussed our benefits for this year. It's reimbursed through CBC. Several people I know are participating and receiving reimbursements. It's not through the Blue 365 that just came out in email. And the healthways program was there last year. I had that membership for over a year. Just sayin'!
as to chairs
staples sells a chair designed for " was specifically designed to meet the needs of workers in 911 dispatch offices, nurses' stations, call centers, control room engineers, disc jockeys, and government personnel. The big and tall design also aids in accommodating larger and taller body types. This chair has been tested to hold a capacity of up to 500 lbs., offering a broader seat and back width."
costs 290 with free delivery.
i kinda doubt that the chairs they did order were this heavy duty.
so the 862 is excessive for no real reason.
Pro tip: that stain is easily removed with diluted dish detergent in cold water. I recommend original formula Dawn and would avoid detergents with any kind of moisturizer, as they'll leave their own stain. Dab the area lightly with the soap solution and pat dry with a paper towel. Repeat this until the stain is gone. It'll take 15 minutes and the chair will look great. Just because it's public property doesn't mean it shouldn't be taken care of.
2:27,
Over indulged in your bottle, or smoked too much weed?
It's true that I did have a high opinion of her originally. She had me fooled. That changed when either she, or she through her husband, referred to "entitled spoiled brat government employees." She refused to apologize for the hateful remark. A person like that should not be involved in HR.
Because the comment at 2:22 is sexist, it is deleted.
I wonder if part of this is simple adherence to trendy "Google" human resource culture. At nearly every management seminar I've attended, there is a fanatical focus on over-the-top incentives for employees. While I definitely think recognizing hard work and maintaning morale is important, I'm more of the "go-home-early-on-friday-if-you-hit-sales-goals" school of management than the "EVERYONE-IS-GOING-TO-DORNEY-PARK-ALL-DAY-ON-THE-COMPANY!" school where lavish reward is rained upon workers for doing the job they are paid to do. A company having a holiday party and an employee and family picnic in the summer is reasonable, a pizza and popcorn party daily in celebration of baseline competence is not. To me at at least. It's expensive and unsustainable for smaller companies and especially public employees, no matter how en vogue this HR philosophy is at the moment.
Our younger employees basically would be upset that we wouldn't spend a day once a week at a waterpark with dinner on us just for gracing the office with their presense. And I think that thinking is becoming more and more the norm.
Does anyone know where the furniture came from? Maybe it is used? How long has she had it? There are purchasing rules in government and department have to comply with them. She's been here a year and a half. How come now? Because you want to get your friend elected and trying to find a weakness? She's done more in 18 months than the last (insert ANY # here) HR directors and 90% of employees would tell you that. The ones who don't like her are probably the ones who have been held accountable by their supervisors and you have supported her. You had no problem when Madam X was removed. You never seem to quote those she's done good things for and there are plenty of those. But that would not make a story for you. Your job (in your mind alone) is to create controversy.
You've made it clear you don't check your facts. You "talked" to people about the gym reimbursement but did you ever contact HR or ask for a copy of the facts on the reimbursement? There is a wellness link right on the intranet. The "ones you spoke to" could have easily provided you that information. But that would validate that your information is wrong.
She can't help it if her husband is an asshole or if you don't believe her. That just gives you a platform to make a lot of noise. Not everyone is a disbarred attorney for malfeasance or has ethical issues. Looks like you are using this blog to continue to practice your previous issues...you were disbarred for forging a clients name...who knows if you fabricated all of this about her using her husband as a vehicle to cause a problem for her. Wouldn't be beyond your demonstrated past behavior...
Check the cost of the 911 chairs and see what they were. Probably not $290...
"entitled spoiled brat government employees."
This is what an overwhelming number of voters think.
It is,but that attitude in an HR Director is bound to lead to bad morale, precisely what exists at NorCo.
" Looks like you are using this blog to continue to practice your previous issues...you were disbarred for forging a clients name...who knows if you fabricated all of this about her using her husband as a vehicle to cause a problem for her. Wouldn't be beyond your demonstrated past behavior..."
I have text messages from her admitting her husband posted the comment, although I think she posted it herself. You seem to have forgotten that little fact when you anonymously accused me of fabricating it. Oopsie.
"You've made it clear you don't check your facts. You "talked" to people about the gym reimbursement but did you ever contact HR or ask for a copy of the facts on the reimbursement?"
Had I written about gym memberships in the body of my post, I would have checked my facts. That came up in comments. And I will believe what an employee I know told me over what someone posts anonymously, but that's me.
"You had no problem when Madam X was removed"
She had me fooled,as I said before. When she or her husband posted the "entitled spoiled brat government employee" remark,and she refused to even apologize for it, that did her in with me. And that was before I knew she was a pig at the trough.
Where is Jim Gregory when you need him? Please run for County Executive.
SO much hate and so much time to hate. Could have easily purchased a penis with your extorted reward money, so you could have a life again....but naaaa. Haters gotta hate
#micropenissyndrome #nics/picsreject #disbarredalckie
@joeapril
Word. There is nothing I hate more than "hey! The ice cream truck is coming to the office today!" or "we're all having a potluck and management will provide the soda!"
Please. We are adults. A day off or a $25 check or whatever would be the way to go. My company puts on a HUGE Christmas party - open premium bar, seafood station, passed hors d'oeuvres, 3 course sit-down dinner, bring your spouse thing at a luxury Morristown hotel when if they just gave everybody $50 and an extra day off at Christmas, we'd think we were in heaven and they'd probably come out ahead.
These popcorn machine/pizza lunches "rewards" are embarrassing and self-congratulatory for upper management
Dear Mrs trapp,
If you are reading this, I beg you to keep doing what you are doing. Anyone who knows the rabbid animal author of this blog, also knows that his unhinged hatred comes from some perceived micro-aggresion, that was born out of nowhere.
His razor thin-skinned uncontrolled temper flares up for no reason, any reason, or simply that you did not bow down and bootlick his feet when he walked by.
Advice....pack heat to and from work...one never knows when a rabbid stalker time bomb will reach the end of his fuse. A NICS/ PICS reject like O'Hare will freak, tumble, foam at the mouth, roll on the floor, and likely burst an anneurism, dropping dead on the rotunda floor. We'll have a parade to celebrate.
Gee, I wonder who that could be. Aneurysm is not spelled "anneurism," rabid is not spelled "rabbid," but I believe you are well-acquainted with the spelling of the word defamation. Gp away and let the grown-ups talk.
Bernie
this trapp should get a monkey and a organ grinder as it allready wheres the clown paint and similar skirt suits made by omar. Than on a friday morning for all its imps blast the sound through norhampton county offices that are on the same friday shcedule could pass and eat some popcorn and make donation to the freek out friday freeby day off.
As for the stalker and its unaddressed obesessions for its untreated modern social issues that cover many mental illnesses tolerable, just delete and save for a later date.
Really nice , how about with that money she is wasting we get our lunches back,Oh but wait we keep claiming they dont have the money! Unbelievable! Kathy allen and her thugs are wasting touch of our hard earned money very sickening ! She should be fired!!!
AGAIN!, The night shift Custodial Department is being singled out. Being accused of drinking and sent out to be tested! Bad enough we are treated like red headed step children
AGAIN, The Custodial Department is being singled out. Accused of drinking on the job!Being sent out to be tested while on the shift. I guess anyone can make up lies about someone and accuse them of this. Nothing like being treated like a red headed step child
Wow that is so wrong of people to mess with lively hoods. The accuser should get in trouble for being wrong and wasting county time
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