Two former IT staff with the company liable for supervising parolees within the metropolis allege that they have been fired or successfully pressured out after Commissioner Sharun Goodwin took workplace, earlier than the company marketed jobs tied to their work, whereas a separate whistleblower-retaliation swimsuit in opposition to division leaders stays pending.
Jenette Cummings and Demmi Slaughter filed separate Article 78 petitions in New York County (Manhattan) Supreme Courtroom late final month, every looking for reinstatement, again pay and different reduction. Their circumstances contain totally different employment circumstances however overlap inside DOP’s data know-how unit, the place each say staff abruptly misplaced entry to techniques wanted to carry out their jobs.
A DOP spokesperson mentioned the division is “committed to serving New Yorkers with fairness, integrity, and professionalism.”
“The City will review the cases when served,” the spokesperson mentioned.
John Scola, Slaughter’s lawyer, informed New York News that company turnover is frequent below new administrations and commissioners, however that the lawfulness of any personnel motion should be assessed on a case-by-case foundation. He mentioned staff from quite a few metropolis businesses had contacted him about personnel adjustments after the Mamdani administration took workplace.
Cummings, who’s representing herself, started working at DOP on Jan. 12 as an IT venture specialist with the enterprise title IT asset administration affiliate. She was dismissed on March 27, roughly two months right into a six-month probationary interval.
Cummings clarified that she was not assigned any duties after the brand new commissioner took workplace. Her supply letter recognized Slaughter as her supervisor, however Cummings mentioned that after Slaughter was now not within the workplace, nobody may inform to whom she reported.
“No one had an answer for me as far as what tasks I had to do for my day-to-day,” Cummings informed New York News. “No one gave any direction.”
“They told me that I didn’t pass probation, but they didn’t tell me the reason why I didn’t pass probation,” Cummings mentioned. “I was never given an evaluation.”
She mentioned she acquired no written or verbal warning earlier than her dismissal.
On April 22, 26 days after Cummings was dismissed, DOP marketed two openings carrying the identical IT Venture Specialist civil-service title and IT Asset Administration Affiliate enterprise title she had held. Cummings mentioned she reapplied however acquired no response.
Dismissed Probation staff query company’s motives
Slaughter’s petition describes a separate however associated dispute. Slaughter, a virtually nine-year metropolis worker, held the everlasting civil-service title Licensed IT Administrator and was serving as performing second-in-command of DOP’s IT unit.
Her petition alleges DOP revoked entry wanted by roughly 12 IT staff on Jan. 27 with out discover or rationalization and, primarily based on data from a colleague, attributes the choice to Chief Info Officer Razwan Mirza.
Slaughter resigned Feb. 17, efficient April 17, alleging the restrictions and lack of rationalization had made her place untenable. She withdrew the resignation on April 13 whereas nonetheless on the payroll, however DOP processed her separation 4 days later, in line with the petition.
Lee informed her the withdrawal couldn’t be accepted as a result of her place had been stuffed. Slaughter alleges DOP additionally proposed inserting her on unpaid depart till the NYPD took her again, though she says she was not on mortgage from the Police Division.
DOP later informed her it had no vacancies constant together with her everlasting title. Her petition factors to the April 22 IT openings, though they carried a distinct civil-service title, and to a later posting for an IT Service Administration Specialist place that she identifies as her former job.
Scola mentioned Slaughter informed him DOP wouldn’t determine who had stuffed her former place and rejected her request to be thought of for one more emptiness.
Scola additionally represents Ebony Huntley, DOP’s former chief investigator, whose April lawsuit alleges she was fired after forwarding an nameless worker grievance about division management to the Division of Investigation.
The grievance raised issues about potential conflicts of curiosity and favoritism, together with an alleged prior relationship between Goodwin and DOP Basic Counsel Wayne McKenzie. It additionally alleged that Goodwin had expressed an intention to take away or marginalize staff related to the earlier administration. The allegations haven’t been confirmed in court docket.
Huntley has since met with DOI, Scola mentioned. He mentioned the town has been served in her case however had not but filed a response.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani mentioned in April that he took the allegations “incredibly seriously” however wouldn’t weigh in on an ongoing investigation.
“New Yorkers should rest assured that there is an investigation,” he mentioned.
The Division of Investigation declined to touch upon whether or not that investigation stays ongoing or, if it has concluded, whether or not it could launch any findings. Metropolis Corridor declined to touch upon a separate request for touch upon the investigation’s standing.
