Opinion ID: 201249
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Vázquez's Demotion

Text: 12 On May 22, 2001, the defendants, Mayor Santiago and Director of Human Resources Delgado, held a meeting with fifteen to eighteen employees, including Vázquez, to notify them that their classifications were being changed pursuant to the decision to declare the 1997 plan null and void and return to the 1991 classifications. According to Vázquez, Santiago explained at that meeting that the PDP had won the election and, in Vázquez's words, said that they had to adopt actions with employees, that they had to clean house.... Santiago then explained that the affected employees had certain rights to administrative hearings and, again in Vázquez's words, that whomever wished to go through attorneys, well, they then had to bear the consequences of their actions and that we would see each other in Court. Vázquez testified that Delgado then took the floor, saying that she agreed with Santiago; Delgado then explained the appeals process to the reclassified employees. 13 Following Delgado's explanation of the appeals process, the employees were handed letters describing their new classifications and explaining the reasons for the reclassifications. The letter to Vázquez stated that she lacked the academic preparation or experience for her current position and was being reassigned to Office Worker/Typist I, the position she held in 1989. According to the defendants' review of her personnel file, that was the last position to which Vázquez had validly been appointed. 14 Vázquez attended a hearing in front of an administrative hearing officer on September 9, 2001. 5 According to Vázquez, the hearing lasted approximately five minutes. In January 2002, the hearing officer issued a report and recommendation to the effect that Vázquez had been illegally hired and promoted. Although Vázquez remained in the Executive Director II position at the monthly salary of $2083 pending the outcome of the hearing, she was officially reassigned to Office Worker/Typist I by letter of January 30, 2002. Her monthly salary was reduced accordingly to $900, effective February 1. On March 15, 2002, Vázquez tendered her resignation to Santiago, effective April 9. Vázquez's employment history with the municipality is summarized below, with appointment date or year, job title, and monthly salary where known. 15 &#x2022; 1985: Office clerk 16 &#x2022; February 1, 1989: Office Worker/Typist I ($545 monthly salary) 17 &#x2022; July 1, 1993: Secretary III ($1019 monthly salary) 18 &#x2022; August 16, 1993: Assistant Director ($1752 monthly salary) 19 &#x2022; 1997: Executive Director II (change of title because of changes in the 1997 plan) 20 &#x2022; May 1, 1999: Administrative Assistant (trust position) 21 &#x2022; January 10, 2001: Executive Director II ($2083 monthly salary) 22 &#x2022; February 1, 2002: Office Worker/Typist I ($900 monthly salary) 23 &#x2022; April 9, 2002: resignation effective