Public Employee Press

Legal victory
Appeals court backs union on residency

In two separate cases filed on behalf of DC 37 members, state courts recently decided in favor of the union and ruled that any employee fired for allegedly violating the city’s residency rules is entitled to a hearing.

Francisco Felix, a High Pressure Plant Tender in Motor Vehicle Operators Local 983, was called into his manager’s office in January 2002 and accused of living outside city limits, a violation of a 1986 executive order. By week’s end, management fired the ex-Marine and father of four without a hearing, although he provided proof that he lived in Flushing, Queens.

The Appellate Division — the state’s second-highest court — determined that Mr. Felix had been denied his right to a hearing and ordered the Dept. of Citywide Administrative Services to rehire the Brooklyn court employee and repay him $106,000 in lost wages.

In a similar case, the Human Resources Administration fired four SSEU Local 371 members for alleged residency violations and denied them hearings. A state Supreme Court judge ordered the agency to restore Donna Williams with back pay; the other cases are pending.

“Threats of dismissal are a recurring problem for city employees who have to abide by the residency rules,” said DC 37 General Counsel Joel Giller. Management often arbitrarily goes after employees based on suspicion or even jealousy-fueled rumor, said Local 983 President Mark Rosenthal.

The city has no stated procedure for proving residency, and the regulations exempt managers, administrators and uniformed employees such as Firefighters, Police Officers and Sanitation workers.

Local 983 attorney Stuart Lichten represented Mr. Felix and Local 371 attorney Jeffrey Kreisberg represented Ms. Williams. The city has the right to appeal the Appellate and Supreme Court decisions.