Christie Administration Paid State Workers $2.7M - To Watch T.V., Play Cards, Report Says

Nearly 1,000 state workers earned $2.7 million just playing cards, watching T.V. and doing little else, according to a report issued by the nonpartisan Office of the State Auditor.

These 800-plus workers reported to a state facility for several months that once housed people with developmental disabilities - even though anywhere from zero to 55 people lived there at the time, according to the audit.

The Woodbridge Developmental Center essentially granted a “layoff extension” to employees before the facility closed in January. But in November 2014, the Office of the State Auditor observed employees in a hub “sitting idle, watching television or playing card games,” according to the audit.

The report said that the employees generally assigned to hubs “generally refused” to work in other duties until the Christie administration on Jan. 9.

The report said the Christie administration decided to keep Woodbridge employees on the payroll an extra 27 days beyond a 120-day layoff notification requirement. That cost the state the $3.2 million, including $2.7 million for the idle employees.

Elizabeth Connolly, acting commissioner of the Department of Human Service, said in the report’s “response” section that half of the salary costs were reimbursed by the federal government. She also noted that the reduction in costs as a result of the closure, as well as other cost saving measures, is $116.9 million annually.

“Although the department was able to process personnel actions at a faster rate than it had anticipated, there was limited flexibility to move up the layoff date,” she wrote.

Under a section entitled “Unreasonable and Improper Payroll Payments,” the audit reported that an increasing number of employees became idle as the center’s client population declined through 2014.

By October, the population was down to 55 clients, and most employees were reassigned to the “first shift,” creating “housing and parking issues.”

To accommodate employees without duties, the center converted buildings into “hubs” equipped with furniture and televisions. But in November 2014, according to the audit, “we observed WDC employees in a hub sitting idle, watching television, or playing card games.”

“Recognizing the problem, WDC management scheduled employees for trainings and bused employees to their future place of employment for pre-job orientations,” the audit said.

The report recommended that, in the event of a future layoff, the Department of Human Services avoid requesting “unnecessary layoff extensions” from the Civil Service Commission, which may result in “unrelated and unreasonable payroll costs.”