Hearing Officer: Mike Duncan was fired for "political reasons".

A hearing officer for the State Personnel Board has issued a 54 page opinion finding that Mike Duncan, the Transportation Cabinet's Deputy Inspector General, was targeted and fired "not from his work performance, but due to a consensus that he must go due to his political beliefs and activities". The hearing officer, John Ryann, deemed the "excessive, erroneous and improper" firing to violate the state merit system law and has recommended that Mr. Duncan be re-hired with back pay.
I have NOT yet seen the 54 page report and I will analyze it when I get a copy. But, I've always believed that any "probationary" employee, such as Mike Duncan, can be fired for NO reason. Apparently, the hearing officer did NOT reach the same conclusion. The Personnel Board can now accept or reject the hearing officer's "recommendations" after which appeals may follow. Stay tuned. I shall post my analysis later.

Update: Here are links, 1 and 2, for the hearing officer's ruling. Though the personnel laws are rather convoluted, they are clear enough for me to render my analysis of the opinion, which is this: when KRS 18A.005, 18A.111, KRS 18A.095(23)(a) and KRS 18A.140 (which provides that "NO Person SHALL be appointed, promoted to, or demoted or DISMISSED from, ANY position in the CLASSIFIED service, or in ANY way favored or DISCRIMINATED against with respect to EMPLOYMENT in the CLASSIFIED service BECAUSE OF HIS POLITICAL or religious OPINIONS OR AFFILIATIONS or ethnic origin or sex or disability (or age over 40)"), are read in conjunction with one another, one CANNOT escape the conclusion that the opinion rendered by the hearing officer is correct. To reach this conclusion, I am of the opinion that the Legislature MUST have intended for this later statute, KRS 18A.140, to operate as an exception to the statutory requirement that an employee FIRST gain "STATUS" (AFTER satisfactorily completing a six (6) month probationary period) before having "standing" to appeal their "separation from their position, reduc[tion] in class or rank or replaced on the eligible list ..." to the Personnel Board. And the facts adduced at the hearing, if believed, are enough to suggest that Mr. Duncan, a classified employee(?), was unlawfully terminated because of his political affiliation with Democrat Ben Chandler, and in violation of the merit system laws.