Paul Bass, Allan Appel Photos
Andy Rizzo and John Prokop received tens of thousands of dollars each for unused sick time when they retired.
When city Building Official Andy Rizzo retired in April, he cashed in 115 days of unused sick time and collected $43,848.72. That was one of two costly pay-outs to departing DeStefano administration officials that may have violated a city contract, depending on whose interpretation you believe.
Rizzo collected that money less than two months after retiring public works city chief John Prokop received $24,349.83 for 64 days of unused sick time.
Cherlyn Poindexter, head of the city’s managers union, called both payments illegal under the language of their contracts.
She called both sick-time payouts are a violation of the contract covering senior mayoral appointees, and should not have been made at a time when the city has been seeking concessions from unions like hers.
Mayoral spokeswoman Anna Mariotti said the payments were standard procedure and enshrined in the contract covering Rizzo and Prokop.
Who’s right depends on the interpretation of Article 8 of the Executive Management and Confidential Employees Personnel and Procedures Manual. The article, which covers sick time, includes the following statement: “Employees hired before November 15, 1991 who leave City service in good standing shall be paid for all sick leaves accumulated to a maximum of 120 days, at the rate of pay in effect at the time of retirement.” The manual is silent on employees hired after Nov. 15, 1991.
Mariotti said Rizzo and Prokop were entitled to their sick time payouts because the city hired them before Nov. 15, 1991.
Poindexter said Rizzo and Prokop are not entitled to the payments for two reasons. First, although they were hired before 1991, they were hired to different positions from they retired from, positions not covered by the executive management contract. Second, both men left the city’s for years before returning — after 1991 — to work as part of executive management.
In Prokop’s case, he was originally hired as a city cop, working on a separate contract with different terms. He eventually left that post and worked for 17 years as the head of security at Southern Connecticut State University. He was hired as the director of the Department of Public Works in 2007. He retired in February.
Rizzo was originally hired as an assistant building inspector in 1990. He left in 1993 to work in North Branford, then spent five years in Windsor. He was hired in 1999 as New Haven’s building official. He retired in April.
“Both Andy Rizzo and John Prokop originally began with the city prior to 1991, so they were entitled to the sick severance pay,” Mariotti said. She said Article 8 states that any member of executive management who was hired by the city before 1991 is entitled to up to 120 days of sick time pay at retirement, regardless of whether they started before 1991 in executive management or whether they were continuously employed by the city since then.
Melissa Bailey File Photo
Poindexter (pictured), whose union recently signed a new contract with the city, said she sees it differently.
“This is not personal, but I don’t think it’s right,” she said. “Especially in a time when the city claims there is no money.”
The city has been calling for concessions in union negotiations, she said. “Now the city is giving away money that clearly these folks are not entitled to according to their contract agreement.”
“Yes they were here before 1991, but they left then came back,” she said. “You cannot bridge those gaps that they had. They were clearly not entitled to payouts for sick time.”
“Something should be done to recoup these funds,” Poindexter said. “My people can’t retire early … because the city said it has no money, but they’re paying people that they don’t have to pay.”
Poindexter said sick-time payouts like these need to stop, since the city will likely see a wave of retirements under a new mayor next year. “They are all appointed. They all have to got when the mayor goes.” If all the retirees get big sick time payments, it could add up to “half a million if not a million dollars,” she said. “That’s money the taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay.”
If it's not illegal, it clearly should be. The blame probably rests with the lawyers and managers who left the language open to interpretation.
Now someone who was hired by the City as a lifeguard for a few days in 1967, but came back to work for the City a few years ago, can collect 120 days of sick pay.