This is a screengrab of a livestream briefing on flooding across West Virginia was held on Feb. 16, 2025. From left are: Adjutant Gen. Jim Seward of the West Virginia National Guard, Gov. Patrick Morrisey and Rob Cunningham, deputy secretary of the West Virginia Department of Homeland Security.
This is a screengrab of a livestream briefing on flooding across West Virginia was held on Feb. 16, 2025. From left are: Adjutant Gen. Jim Seward of the West Virginia National Guard, Gov. Patrick Morrisey and Rob Cunningham, deputy secretary of the West Virginia Department of Homeland Security.
West Virginia has a nepotism problem when it comes to big business and the political ruling class (which is a big business in itself). That’s nothing new.
Indeed, nearly every state in the nation has a nepotism problem somewhere. It’s just that in West Virginia, as has often been stated, it’s a lot easier to see. The state population is at 1.7 million and falling. Certain professions, leadership positions and organizations have been headed up and staffed by people bearing the same last names for generations.
As such, policy that enforces a meritocracy — awarding positions to the people most qualified regardless of connections, status, race, gender, etc. — would seem ideal.
But Gov. Patrick Morrisey’s idea of a meritocracy as he discussed it last week seems a bit contradictory.
As the Gazette-Mail’s Phil Kabler pointed out, Morrisey is pushing legislation to convert civil servants into at-will employees, meaning they can be fired without cause at any time and without access to a grievance procedure. Apparently that’s supposed to ensure those who are in certain jobs will perform them well if they don’t want to get fired.
But, as Kabler mentioned, state code already lays out that these positions must be filled based on merit, specifically. Why undo that? The legislation would also phase out high qualification requirements for certain positions. If West Virginia wants the best employees for these state positions, how would lowering the standard for employment provide a merit-based system?
What Morrisey and company are really trying to do is turn important civil service jobs into jobs that resemble the private sector. It’s the old chestnut of running government like a business, which might seem like a good idea but ultimately goes against the nature of both. Standards and protections are provided in certain government jobs so that those who are most qualified don’t get run out on the basis of politics or personal disagreements. It’s supposed to stabilize important institutions and make sure they’re staffed by the best and brightest.
Is it perfect? Of course not. Do connections, relationships and other inside factors sometimes help or hurt a potential employee? Probably. But stripping the guardrails designed to create a meritocracy does not replace it with another meritocracy. It sets up a system where mass firings and hirings can happen based on whims and alignments, political or otherwise.
