DLSE Teasing, Dangling the Carrot

DLSE recently opened up the Deputy Labor Commissioner II (DLC II) exam and held interviews.
Two points to be made on this:
1. Most of the questions were memory questions, so if one memorized facts, case law, etc., then one had a good chance of doing well. The desk donkies somehow made the connection that having a good memory actually does determine that the person can successfully do the job. According to their logic, memory is the primary trait they're seeking, so caseload management, interpersonal communication skills, and education are not.
2. There are currently no openings, so the whole point of this is to what? Is it to show other agencies or desk donkies that DLSE has a current list? Not that anyone will be promoted in the distant future, but DLSE has a list.
Or is their real motive more invisible, like pacifying 10-year veterans who haven't had a payraise/promotion in as many years? I can almost hear a desk donkey saying, "let's pretend there are openings, get their hopes up by putting them on a list, and that will shut them up for a couple years before the dumb ones wise up as to what we've done." The bonus is that if you become a DLC II (in 2012), you still might get to work under Nance Steffen! Why would anyone want to retire from the DLSE when the only option is to hang out with 40 angry, bitter, micro-managing cats?