2023 New York Laws › CVS - Civil Service › Article 5 - Personnel Changes › Title B - Removal and Other Disciplinary Proceedings › 75-B - Retaliatory Action by Public Employers.

§ 75-b. Retaliatory action by public employers. 1. For the purposes of
this section the term:
(a)  "Public  employer"  or "employer" shall mean (i) the state of New
York, (ii)  a  county,  city,  town,  village  or  any  other  political
subdivision  or  civil division of the state, (iii) a school district or
any  governmental  entity  operating  a  public   school,   college   or
university,  (iv) a public improvement or special district, (v) a public
authority, commission or public benefit corporation, or (vi)  any  other
public  corporation, agency, instrumentality or unit of government which
exercises governmental power under the laws of the state.
(b) "Public employee" or "employee" shall mean any  person  holding  a
position  by  appointment  or  employment  in  the  service  of a public
employer except judges or justices  of  the  unified  court  system  and
members of the legislature.
(c)  "Governmental  body" shall mean (i) an officer, employee, agency,
department, division, bureau, board, commission, council,  authority  or
other  body  of  a public employer, (ii) employee, committee, member, or
commission  of  the  legislative   branch   of   government,   (iii)   a
representative,  member  or  employee of a legislative body of a county,
town, village or any other political subdivision or  civil  division  of
the  state, (iv) a law enforcement agency or any member or employee of a
law enforcement agency, or (v) the judiciary  or  any  employee  of  the
judiciary.
(d)  "Personnel  action"  shall mean an action affecting compensation,
appointment,    promotion,    transfer,    assignment,     reassignment,
reinstatement or evaluation of performance.
2.  (a) A public employer shall not dismiss or take other disciplinary
or other adverse personnel action against a  public  employee  regarding
the   employee's   employment   because  the  employee  discloses  to  a
governmental body information: (i) regarding a violation of a law,  rule
or  regulation  which  violation  creates and presents a substantial and
specific danger to the public  health  or  safety;  or  (ii)  which  the
employee   reasonably  believes  to  be  true  and  reasonably  believes
constitutes an  improper  governmental  action.  "Improper  governmental
action"  shall  mean  any action by a public employer or employee, or an
agent  of  such  employer  or  employee,  which  is  undertaken  in  the
performance  of such agent's official duties, whether or not such action
is within the scope of his employment, and which is in violation of  any
federal, state or local law, rule or regulation.
3. (a) Where an employee is subject to dismissal or other disciplinary
action  under  a  final  and  binding  arbitration  provision,  or other
disciplinary procedure contained in a collectively negotiated agreement,
or under section seventy-five of this title or any  other  provision  of
state  or  local  law  and the employee reasonably believes dismissal or
other disciplinary action would not have been taken but for the  conduct
protected  under  subdivision  two of this section, he or she may assert
such as a defense before the designated arbitrator or  hearing  officer.
The merits of such defense shall be considered and determined as part of
the  arbitration  award  or  hearing  officer decision of the matter. If
there is a finding that the dismissal or other  disciplinary  action  is
based  solely  on  a  violation by the employer of such subdivision, the
arbitrator or hearing officer shall dismiss or  recommend  dismissal  of
the  disciplinary  proceeding,  as  appropriate,  and,  if  appropriate,
reinstate the employee with back pay, and, in the case of an arbitration
procedure, may take other appropriate action  as  is  permitted  in  the
collectively negotiated agreement.
(b)  Where  an  employee  is  subject  to  a  collectively  negotiated
agreement which contains provisions preventing an employer  from  taking

adverse  personnel  actions  and  which  contains  a  final  and binding
arbitration provision to resolve alleged violations of  such  provisions
of  the  agreement  and  the  employee  reasonably  believes  that  such
personnel action would not have been taken but for the conduct protected
under  subdivision  two  of this section, he or she may assert such as a
claim before the arbitrator. The arbitrator shall  consider  such  claim
and determine its merits and shall, if a determination is made that such
adverse personnel action is based on a violation by the employer of such
subdivision, take such action to remedy the violation as is permitted by
the collectively negotiated agreement.
(c)  Where  an  employee  is  not  subject to any of the provisions of
paragraph (a) or (b) of this subdivision, the employee may  commence  an
action  in  a  court  of competent jurisdiction under the same terms and
conditions as set forth in article twenty-C of the labor law.
4. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to diminish or  impair  the
rights  of a public employee or employer under any law, rule, regulation
or collectively negotiated agreement or to prohibit any personnel action
which otherwise would have been taken regardless of  any  disclosure  of
information.