Mariah Kennedy, CSC Docket No. 2022-3141

BackgroundMariah Kennedy appeals the decision of the Division of Agency Services (Agency Services) which found that she did not meet the experience requirements for the promotional examination for Senior Account Clerk (PM3861D), Cape May City.

The subject promotional examination had a closing date of March 21, 2022 and was open to employees in the non-competitive division who had an aggregate of one year of continuous permanent service as of the closing date in the title Account Clerk and who met the announced requirement of one year of experience in the preparation, maintenance and/or review and verification of financial records. The appellant was found to be below the minimum requirements in experience. As the appellant was the sole applicant, the examination was cancelled on June 17, 2022.

On her application, the appellant listed one position, Senior Account Clerk. She was credited with seven months of experience for this provisional position, and was found to be lacking five months of required experience.

Appellant's argumentOn appeal, the appellant provides information regarding additional positions she had previously held, including Account Clerk from June 2020 to her provisional appointment in Cape May City.

CONCLUSION

RuleN.J.A.C. 4A:4-2.6(a) provides that applicants shall meet all requirements specified in the promotional examination announcement by the closing date. N.J.A.C. 4A:4-2.1(f) provides that an application may only be amended prior to the announced closing date.

N.J.A.C. 4A:1-1.2(c) provides that the Civil Service Commission may relax the rules for good cause in a particular situation, on notice to affected parties, in order to effectuate the purposes of Title 11A, New Jersey Statutes.

AnalysisIn the instant matter, the appellant was found to be lacking five months of qualifying experience as the appellant was only credited for seven months of experience in her provisional position in the subject title. As such, Agency Services correctly determined that the appellant was not eligible for the subject examination. Nevertheless, while the appellant’s Account Clerk position was not listed on her application, the duties for this position were provided on appeal and are applicable, and the appellant accrued over one year of experience in that title. She serves as a provisional in the subject title, and the examination was cancelled. As such, good cause exists to relax the provisions of N.J.A.C. 4A:4-2.6(a) and N.J.A.C. 4A:4-2.1(f), and accept the appellant’s additional experience, for eligibility purposes only, and admit her to the examination.

On a final note, the On-Line Application System User’s Guide cautions applicants to carefully review the application to ensure that it is complete and accurate before submitting, and to complete the application in detail. It states that failure to complete the application properly may cause the applicant to be declared ineligible. The instructions under the experience portion of the applications advise applicants to provide all employment information (not just current employment information), and if they have multiple positions, they need to make sure that they provide each one separately. The appellant should follow these instructions and properly complete any future applications for examinations.

ORDER

Therefore, it is ordered that this appeal be granted, the examination cancellation be rescinded, and the appellant’s application be processed.

ClosingThis is the final administrative determination in this matter. Any further review should be pursued in a judicial forum.