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Former Parking Enforcement Officer Entitled to Hearing Re: Whether Town Abolished Her Civil Service Position in Bad Faith

The Second Department determined petitioner was entitled to a hearing re: whether the town acted in bad faith in abolishing her position as a parking enforcement officer. Just prior to her termination, the town hired four parking enforcement officers who were not required to take the civil service examination:

In light of NY Constitution, article V, § 6, a public employer may abolish a civil service position when the “discontinuance of the position would promote efficiency and economy,” provided that the employer acts in good faith … . The Court of Appeals has stated that “[a] public employer may abolish civil service positions for the purpose of economy or efficiency, as long as the position is not abolished as a subterfuge to avoid statutory protection afforded civil servants before they are discharged'” … . Where a public employer has abolished a civil service position, an employee challenging that determination has the burden of proving that the employer engaged in a bad faith effort to circumvent the Civil Service Law … .

Here, it is undisputed that four new part-time parking enforcement officers were hired in 2011; one of those employees was hired in October 2011, only a month before the petitioner was informed that her position would likely be abolished. Further, the Town and Town Board submitted no evidence as to whether the decision to abolish the petitioner’s position was made by Town Board resolution, or by some other means. Pursuant to the doctrine of legislative equivalency, a civil service position “created by a legislative act can only be abolished by a correlative legislative act” … . Here, the record does not indicate the specific mechanism by which the petitioner’s position was abolished. Additionally, although the Town submitted some evidence showing that it undertook various cost-cutting measures in connection with its 2012 budget, the record contains no evidence as to any legislative or other deliberations underlying the determination at issue here. Matter of Colabella v Town of Eastchester, 2015 NY Slip Op 07656, 2nd Dept 10-21-15

 

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