Voting on county time-clock tabled

Luzerne County Commissioners Stephen A. Urban and Thomas Cooney tabled a vote to buy an employee time-clock system, evoking strong frustration from Commissioner Maryanne Petrilla.

“This is in my opinion something that 330-some thousand people in the county have been crying for us to move forward,” Petrilla, commission chairwoman, said after she was outvoted.

Urban and Cooney said they wanted to take more time to review the proposals from all interested companies, in part because unsuccessful bidder Ray Hillman attended Wednesday’s commissioners meeting to say his locally based business is offering the best price.

After criticism from several taxpayers during the meeting, county Chief Clerk/Manager Doug Pape said he can’t “in good conscience” keep quiet about the reason Hillman’s company, Luzerne-based Hillman Time Systems Inc., was ruled out.

Pape said Hillman called him a few weeks ago, after the proposals were submitted to the county, indicating that he had helped to prepare the county document seeking proposals and “did it in such a way that would make it that Kronos Inc. and ADP (Automatic Data Processing Inc.) wouldn’t be able to respond.”

The county’s request for proposals was issued in September and prepared by former county human resources director Doug Richards, who was later terminated and charged as part of the federal corruption probe, officials said.

“I don’t do business that way,” Pape said, noting that he relayed Hillman’s comment to commissioners and the county solicitor.

Pape said Hillman “didn’t do a good enough job” excluding other responders because the county received four other proposals, including ones from ADP and Kronos, which became the finalists.

“Based on that knowledge, we didn’t feel we could in good conscience award Hillman the contract because the other providers could come back and say it was an inside deal,” Pape said.

“That’s one thing this administration has completely gotten away from,” Petrilla said.

Petrilla asked Hillman if he had worked “very closely” with Richards and former Chief Clerk/County Manager Sam Guesto to prepare the request for proposals.

Hillman said the men asked him to provide a template of bid specifications in 2005 that could be used as a guideline to prepare a request for proposals. He said it’s not his “fault” if the administration based the request for proposals on information supplied by him.

Hillman said he believes taxpayers would support his proposal, which he says amounts to roughly $295,000 compared to the estimated $410,160 commissioners had planned to approve for Chelmsford, Mass.-based Kronos.

Kronos would charge a $45,140 annual maintenance fee, while Hillman said his company would provide the same service for about $25,000 per year.

Hillman said his family has been operating its business in the county for 64 years and would provide a Biometric system that registers fingerprints or palms and is compatible with the county’s computerized payroll system.

County officials want a system requiring all employees to clock in and out by pressing their fingers or palms on a special pad. Hours worked and vacation and sick leave would be tracked electronically with the new system, eliminating the need for manual data entry, officials said.

“I was just wondering why we weren’t considered and why they’re looking to spend that extra money,” Hillman said during Wednesday’s meeting.

Urban and Cooney said they still support time clocks, but want to review all proposals to ensure the county is getting the best system and price. Urban said he expects to vote on the matter next month and noted he does not believe any vendors should be involved in preparing a request for proposals when they are bidding.

Petrilla said the matter has been on the commissioners’ docket for “many months” and a team of county administrators unanimously recommended the Kronos system because it offered the best proposal.

Though taxpayers have been demanding time clocks for years, several attended Wednesday’s meeting advising commissioners to forgo the expense and force managers to crack down on employees who are not putting in required time on the job.

“I ask you to stop wasting my hard-earned money on such folly,” said property owner Michael Giamber.

Taxpayer Wil Toole said he’s “adamantly opposed” to the expense because he believes managers should be tracking time worked and vacation and sick leave.

Ed Chesnovitch, another taxpayer, said commissioners should give Hillman’s proposal more consideration.

“Mr. Chesnovitch, you know darn well that if there was an inside deal, you’d be the first one up there screaming your head off,” she said.