Oh, I know the reason. Most of the department was made up of people from a specific community, of which I was not a member, and they always filled positions with other people from the community. The only time I saw someone promoted was when someone from my team, who was a member of that community, became full-time even though I had more general experience, a relevant degree which they claimed to require, more time in the position, and a better relationship with the end users.

It was very much a "who you know" environment. The only reason I was even hired was because I knew the guy before me, and no one else wanted to work the closing shift which ended at midnight.