Recent decisions by New York City's Office of Administrative Trials and Hearing Administrative Law Judges
Employee’s conduct on the job found guilty of creating a risk to others at the workplace
OATH Index No. 1236/14
OATH Administrative Law Judge Kara J. Miller found an employee threatened a stationary engineer on two occasions, improperly lowered medical air pressure, failed to follow a directive to put oil in the air compressor, and left his post and created a potentially hazardous situation by failing to tighten the feed valve on the regulator for one of the boilers.
Judge Miller credited the engineer's testimony that after an alarm sounded in the boiler room, the employee stormed into the engineer's room, asked what was going on, picked up the engineer's computer monitor and lifted it in the air while threatening the engineer. The ALJ also credited the engineer's testimony that the employee had approached him in the parking lot as he was walking to his car and threatened him in a loud and profane manner.
ALJ Miller recommended termination of the employee be terminated from his position, finding that his conduct created a risk to others working at the facility.
The decision is posted on the Internet at:
Correction officer found guilty of violating a number of his agency’s rules
OATH Index No. 1962/15
A New York City correction officer [CO] was found to have been absent from his residence without authorization while on sick leave and was given instructions to report to the Department’s Health Management Division [HMD] with his shield, his identification [ID] and his personal firearms.
When he reported to HMD, he was placed on immediate suspension because it was his fourth violation. He surrendered his shield and ID but not his firearm, stating that the weapon was at his other residence in Pennsylvania. Although directed to await an escort to accompany him to the Pennsylvania residence to retrieve the firearm, the CO left the facility. The CO then claimed to have found the weapon at his Brooklyn residence on the following day.
OATH Administrative Law Judge Ingrid M. Addison found the CO insubordinate for being out of residence without authorization, failing to surrender his firearm when requested, disobeying the order to remain at HMD, and failing to promptly notify the Department that he had legally changed his name.
Judge Addison recommended that the CO be termination from his position.
The decision is posted on the Internet at:
http://archive.citylaw.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/17/oath/15_cases/15-1962.pdf
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