Suffolk public works worker demoted, harassed over failed deal with boss

A Suffolk County public works employee is suing the county and his former boss for more than $4 million, alleging he was unfairly demoted and harassed after a deal went wrong with his boss.

Edward Burns, 52, of Islip Terrace, was arrested in 2022 after a dispute with former public works director and building maintenance and operations manager Craig Rose, according to a complaint filed in state Supreme Court. He said he was stripped of his job duties and relegated to a desk in a warehouse with no computers. April 4th.

“It’s terrible. I’ve been living in exile for over a year,” Burns told Newsday. Burns earned $92,628 in 2023, according to county payroll records.

He is seeking $4.06 million in damages. In addition, he received a pay reduction and was appointed as Assistant Director of Public Works, which had been a tentative title.

Suffolk County spokesman Mike Martino said county officials cannot comment on pending litigation. Rose, who retired earlier this year, could not be reached for comment.

Burns said he and Rose each invested $50,000 in 2016 to buy Burns’ home to use as a rental property. But Burns was forced to sell his home as part of the divorce agreement, according to the complaint.

According to the complaint, Rose demanded monthly installments of $1,200 from 2016 to 2022, for a total of $60,000. Mr. Rose also asked Mr. Burns to take out a life insurance policy and name Mr. Rose as the beneficiary, which Mr. Burns did.

According to the complaint, Burns said the harassment began in November 2022 when she stopped paying him $1,200. Rose reportedly told Burns, “When I say it’s paid, it’s going to be paid.”

Burns, who was serving as interim assistant director until May 2023, said Rose has changed his position. requirements, This made it possible for employees with lower seniority to take the civil service exam, and one of them was given a full-time post.

In July, Burns was moved to a warehouse, where he sat on a metal folding chair. Initially, he only had a cardboard box for his desk. He said Rose also took away county work vehicles and turned off access cards to county buildings.

“He is effectively employed on vacation while the taxpayers pay his salary,” said Burns’ attorney Brett Garraway, a partner at the Manhattan law firm McLaughlin & Stern LLP. said.

“I think of this as a public works version of the movie ‘Office Space,'” said Garraway, in which employees are repeatedly abused before management moves their desks into the company’s basement. he said, referring to the 1999 film.

Representatives from the City Employees Association, the labor union that represents and represents Burns. Mr. Rose declined to comment.

In an August interview with county officials called a “sworn investigation,” Burns accused Rose of retaliating and accepting kickbacks from county vendors, according to the complaint. The county took no action against Rose, instead filing the “frivolous” disciplinary claims in the complaint against Barnes. According to the complaint, Burns was suspended for 30 days without pay pending a hearing.

Rose left the company before undergoing a similar interview process, according to the complaint.

Mr. Burns pleaded guilty to misdemeanor gambling in 2011. Prosecutors had alleged he used county vehicles to offer sports betting. He said the criminal charges have nothing to do with the current case.