When longtime Rock Island County Circuit Clerk Lisa Bierman took early retirement in July, she appointed Tammy Weikert to replace her.
Days later, Weikert hired Bierman's daughter for an upper level management position in the office as a $51,000 a year systems manager.
The position was never posted to allow other applicants to interview for the job.
"It wasn't posted. Our upper level management positions don't have to be posted," said Weikert.
Weikert defends the hiring, saying she knows Sara Bierman can handle the job, and says there was no one from within the Clerk's office who was qualified or interested.
"She's the qualified candidate that I was aware of at that time and we have to get staff in position immediately," she said.
"I've known her since she was young. I didn't want to dis-clude her because of her name," she said.
WQAD was unable to get a copy of the job description.
The younger Bierman graduated from Bradley University in 2009 majoring in journalism.
She had been working as a social media marketing specialist for Lee Enterprises.
Weikert has worked in the Clerk's office for 17 years under Lisa Bierman before being appointed to the top job, which she says she plans to run for in the March primary.
She says with so many experienced people taking early retirement offered by the county, she needed to fill the position quickly.
"With the amount of experience going out the door with this early retirement incentive our office is really suffering and we need to get valuable people in these positions right away," she said.
Some clerks in the office who have been there for several years declined to go on camera, but called the outside hiring "a joke and a slap in the face" in light of the county's financial plight.
County Board member Drue Mielke says he had no idea Bierman's daughter had been hired for the job.
"An elected official doesn't have to go through human resources to make a hiring. It could be an excellent choice, but why not have it open and transparent?" Mielke said.
Weikert says she trusts Bierman and her abilities and approached her about the position.
"I believe Sara will do a wonderful job," she said.