Labor & Employment Law

Dismissal of a provisional employee

By Harvey Randall, Esq.

Dismissal of a provisional employee
Miggins v City of New York, App. Div., 1st Dept., 286 A.D.2d 258

Cheryl Miggins was appointed as a provisional caseworker by the New York City Administration for Children's Services in June 1997. Although her performance evaluation for 1997 was "good," in January 1999, presumably reflecting the quality of her services during 1998, Miggins received a "conditional" performance evaluation. In March 1999 the agency terminated her employment.

Claiming that her dismissal was made in bad faith, Miggins sued. She asked the court to order her reinstatement to her former position with back pay. She claimed that her second, "conditional" evaluation "reflected a personal conflict between [herself] and a friend of her supervisor's" and, therefore, the evaluation "constituted bad faith."

The Appellate Division said that as a provisional employee, Miggins could be discharged at any time, without a hearing, for any or no reason, in the absence of a showing that her dismissal was (1) in bad faith or (2) for a constitutionally impermissible purpose or (3) otherwise in violation of law.

Finding that Miggins alleged only that her termination was made in bad faith, the court dismissed her petition. Why? Because, said the Appellate Division, Miggins failed to meet her burden of presenting competent proof that her dismissal was, indeed, made in bad faith.

Full post as published by New York Public Personnel Law on March 14, 2008 (boomark / email).