The “ghost job” controversy involving Gov. Scott Walker isn't disappearing just yet.
Walker has been under fire this week for his administration giving large pay raises to three state workers who went through temporary or phantom job transfers to qualify for higher pay. Critics say the jobs never really existed – hence “ghost jobs.”
Some other governors have done the same thing, but state Democratic Party Chairman Mike Tate says Walker's move was worse. “There have been instances in the past where this has been used, but I don’t think we’ve ever seen anything as egregious as this.”
Tate is especially concerned that one of the big pay hikes went to a state economist who helped Walker's recall election campaign. Tate says Walker is violating a campaign promise: “Scott Walker ran on eliminating cronyism; the reality is he's perfected it.”
In La Crosse this week, Walker declined to take responsibility for the latest job transfers. “I’ve got about 70,000 employees,” said Walker. “Certainly we’ll look at five out of the 70,000 with the circumstances. But they’re certainly not decisions I made.”
The state Department of Administration says all moves were allowed under state personnel rules.
