[tuesday20]

So what if they don’t know how to hire programmers? All they have to do is hire someone who has had engineering leadership role/experience and let them hire programmers, isn’t it?

Isn’t it easier to verify someone’s leadership credentials than COBOL skills?

[giaour]

Most government hiring does not work like that. "HR Specialists" decide if incoming applicants are qualified, and the hiring manager has little or nothing to do with it.

[jeromegv]

Lots of people are giving up before even trying.

[antonvs]

States have done this to themselves. They can't expect people not to treat them warily just because they've suddenly discovered that their inattention to their own problems has consequences.