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By JENNIFER LEARN-ANDES jandes@leader.net
Thursday, March 20, 2003 Page: 9A
WILKES-BARRE – Former Hazleton Area School Board member and retired
Hazleton police officer Tom Marnell was hired Wednesday to fill a “vacant”
Luzerne County employment counselor position.
Valley Crest Nursing Home certified nursing assistant Tim Melan was demoted
Wednesday to a“vacant” kitchen aide position.
Several other “vacancies” also were filled recently by Court of Common
Pleas President Judge Mike Conahan.
Luzerne County officials said at the start of the year that no vacancies
would be filled or funded because of the county’s money problems, but it turns
out that wasn’t true.
County Personnel/Budget Director Russ Arnone said at Wednesday’s Board of
Commissioners meeting that although 71 vacancies weren’t funded, there are
other jobs remaining on the books that are budgeted and able to be filled,
including the ones held by Marnell and Melan and ones recently filled by the
courts.
So how do county officials and job seekers outside the county arena know
what jobs are ready for hire? There really isn’t any place they can look
because the county has not compiled a list of the vacant but funded positions.
Board of Commissioners Chairman Tom Pizano said during Wednesday’s
commissioners meeting that Arnone would supply a list of funded vacancies to
anyone who is interested.
Arnone agreed, but when pressed for the list after the meeting his staff
said he would need more time because he has to manually pore over each
department budget to create the list.
And, that list won’t include funded court vacancies – even though the
county budget Arnone drafts includes the courts – because court administration
has its own personnel office.
A written request for funded court vacancies was left at Special Court
Administrator P.J. Adonizio’s office Wednesday, but he did not supply a list
or return telephone requests.
Luzerne County Human Resources Development Executive Director Rich Heffron
said the employment counselor position was posted in CareerLink offices and at
the courthouse but wasn’t advertised in newspapers.
There were six applicants, and Marnell was the most qualified, Heffron
said.
Heffron said he didn’t know Marnell was a former School Board member, but
Marnell did tell him he was a retired Hazleton police officer.
Marnell did not return calls seeking comment.
Political insiders say Marnell who is registered as a Democrat at P.O. Box
24 in Conyngham – got the job through his ties to First District Democratic
Chairman Angelo Spadell in Hazleton.
Marnell also once held another public job as building administrator for the
Pennsylvania Department of General Services in Reading. The state could not
immediately access records saying when Marnell left employment there.
Marnell’s son and his son’s then-fiancee also were hired as Hazleton Area
teachers while Marnell was a School Board member.
Marnell will earn $27,000 in the new position, which requires him to work
closely with clients who are getting off welfare and seeking employment.
Hazleton Area School Board member Marie Kay was hired recently for another
position in Heffron’s department.
County minority Commissioner Stephen A. Urban abstained from voting on
Marnell because he had no information on Marnell’s qualifications or
indication that the position was needed.
“I understand that department is funded by the federal government, but
that’s immaterial because the more people we hire the less money that goes
into programs to help train people to get a job,” Urban said.
Urban also voted against switching Melan to the dietary position, saying he
“shouldn’t be working in the facility anymore.”
Melan was demoted after county officials held a hearing and determined he
lifted a resident in a manner that was contrary to his training.
Pizano and fellow majority Commissioner Tom Makowski voted for the job
change.
In other business, Makowski said he has not had a chance to read
commissioner candidate Frank Trinisewski’s letter asking commissioners to hold
off voting on reassessment, but Makowski said it won’t change his mind about
pushing for a vote on reassessment before he leaves office the end of the
year.
“My commitment to reassessment stays as is,” Makowski said.
Urban, who is seeking re-election, said he wants to proceed with
computerizing, mapping and cataloging all property records before he votes on
reassessment, which he believes is needed to restore tax fairness in the
county.
Pizano said the computerization portion will cost about $4 million and can
be done without committing to reassessment.