nothin Cameras Catch School Security Misbehaving | New Haven Independent

Cameras Catch School Security Misbehaving

New Haven Office Of Labor Relations

Ronald Rosarbo, Angelita Zayas and a third person take water bottles from the New Haven Adult Education Center.

They smuggled stolen water bottles. They constantly showed up late. They lied on timesheets.

They got caught. Their union went to bat for them. They ended up losing their jobs — and their union ended up taken over.

The they” in question are three New Haven school security guards.

The city conducted internal investigations into their misdeeds, ending with their firings.

Colleagues spoke up to the national union about what they considered local union leaders’ alleged failure to address misconduct. Within weeks, the national American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) temporarily took control of one of New Haven’s clerical unions. Colleagues spoke up to the national union about what they considered local union leaders’ covering up of misconduct.

These cases represent a handful of guards who acted irresponsibly and got away with it for years, lowering the morale of the department, according to a joint letter signed by 31 school security officers.

Your willingness to sacrifice your integrity by covering up your actions and then, when caught, minimize the seriousness of the misconduct destroys your reputation with your fellow officers, the City and the community you serve,” wrote New Haven School Security Chief Thaddeus Reddish, a retired New Haven assistant police chief, in one of the termination letters.

New Haven Office Of Labor Relations

Supervisor Ronald Rosarbo carries water bottles out of the New Haven Adult Ed building.

The New Haven Independent obtained details of the three investigations through a Freedom of Information Act request.

The supervisors and their union leaders defended their actions as minor misconduct, or in other cases, misunderstandings.

The investigations document a series of bizarre behaviors from two longtime employees in particular, Angelita Zayas and Ronald Rosarbo. Zayas and Rosarbo have been working for the district since 1988 and 1998, respectively. They held the titles of supervisors before Zayas was fired and Rosarbo retired this April.

Both supervisors routinely lied on their timesheets throughout the early fall before both were put on paid administrative leave on Oct.15, according to the investigatory reports. At the time, all New Haven Public Schools students except a few students with disabilities were learning remotely as a Covid-19 safety decision. Some teachers were teaching remotely from their classrooms starting in early September.

Between Aug. 31 and Oct. 14, Zayas was tardy 24 times and did not report that this was the case. Though she was supposed to start work at 8 a.m, she swiped into her post at Columbus Family Academy as late as 12:41 p.m.

The investigator looking into her case, Scott Nabel of the Office of Labor Relations-Citywide, calculated that these repeated, unreported absences cost the district $938.13, based on Zayas’ hourly rate of $27.38.

Another four times between Sept. 8 and Sept. 23, Zayas claimed to work extra duty at the Adult Education building and either did not show up or showed up for less time than she claimed. These false overtime sheets cost the district a total of $718.72.

The investigation into Rosarbo documents eight times when he ignored where he was supposed to work or submitted timesheets for a shift that he never actually worked. Pay for these instances add up to $482.30.

Rosarbo and Zayas occasionally worked together to flout what they were supposed to be doing, according to the investigatory reports. On Sept. 30, 2020, the two met at the New Haven Adult & Continuing Education Center to carry four cases of water out of the building. Zayas threw her jacket over one of the cases; it is less visible but still barely recognizable in the surveillance footage.

The investigation calls this instance theft by of school property.

Months after being suspended on administrative leave, Rosarbo tried to return two of the cases of water via his union president, Harold Brooks. Brooks, president of AFSCME Local 3144, told those investigating Rosarbo that the water bottle theft” was a misunderstanding that the two supervisors had with the Adult Ed principal. Brooks dropped off 48 bottles of water at Adult Ed on Jan. 4, 2021 and emailed the schools’ human resources department that he had done so, cc’ing Superintendent Iline Tracey.

Prior Incident

New Haven Office Of Labor Relations

Screenshot of the social media post.

Rosarbo had a previous three-day suspension in 2017 for selling candy unauthorized and taking items that had been donated to a school for Columbus House.

After the two were placed on paid administrative leave, Zayas posted a comment on a coworkers’ social media page that added to the case against her.

She posted a sexually explicit quote by Terry Richardson, the fashion photographer long accused by many models of sexual harassment, with a GIF of the Tom and Jerry mouse laughing and pointing.

Both Zayas and Rosarbo received invitations on March 29 to pre-disciplinary hearings held over Zoom. Rosarbo applied for retirement. Zayas did not show up to her hearing and was fired by Chief Thaddeus Reddish.

The third school security officer fired around that time was Roger Robinson. Robinson refused to show up to work on Feb. 4. Reddish sent him a memo that he had to show up to work or would be disciplined, including potentially fired.

On Feb. 9, Robinson texted Reddish apologizing for his absence. He said that he was afraid of getting himself and his mother sick with a Covid-19 case at Benjamin Jepson School. Robinson promised the situation would not happen again.

A few weeks later, Robinson lied about where he was during a radio check-in. He said he was at Worthington Hooker School when he was actually at Troup School, unauthorized.

At Robinson’s disciplinary hearing in April, he said that he was trying to get some paperwork to take care of his mother and sister’s health at Troup.

Reddish found these excuses unhelpful to Robinson’s case. The officers’ job descriptions rely on them being responsible, reliable and honest, he stated. In addition, Robinson could have endangered students or other staff by not being at his post, even though no students were at the school on that Wednesday.

Your repeat offense just two weeks after your assurance that it would never occur again and making implausible excuses or motives for your actions unveils a character flaw that makes it impossible for you to continue your employment as a security officer,” Reddish wrote in Robinson’s termination letter.

AFSCME Steps In

Melanie Espinal File Photo

New Haven Public Schools Security Director Thaddeus Reddish, who pursued the misconduct allegations.

The school security guards belong to AFSCME Local 884.

According to the security guards’ coworkers, Local 884 leaders fostered misconduct among a few guards by ignoring their behavior. Reddish’s proactive approach is a welcome contrast, they said.

Before Chief Reddish came to the security department, the morale was low, the community, the BOE staff and union personnel did not respect security officers. There were a few that were constantly getting in trouble, yet when disciplinary actions were taken, they received a slap on the wrist and then back to business as usual,” security officers wrote in a joint letter. Union leadership did nothing when it was brought to their attention.”

The 31 school security officers who signed the joint letter stated they were angered by a hearing at the Board of Alders Public Safety Committee. At the hearing on April 22, Local 884 President Lore Lichtenberg told the alders that Reddish has destabilized officer jobs and is making officers afraid to speak out with unresolved investigations into their conduct. She reported that 10 longtime employees have retired or resigned due to this hostility and intimidation.

One week later, just over half of the security officers represented by Local 884 signed a no-confidence vote in Lichtenberg’s leadership. The group penned the joint letter to Mayor Justin Elicker on May 6 in support of Reddish’s leadership.

On May 13, AFSCME International President Lee Saunders suspended Lichtenberg from leading Local 884. Other officers within the national union, including Area Field Services Director Tim Birch, temporarily took over administration.

Birch declined to comment on exactly why the national union took over the local. He would not confirm whether the no-confidence vote prompted the takeover.

We are in the process of working with Local 884 to ensure the AFSCME constitution is being followed and to make sure all services to members remain uninterrupted. We have begun meeting with members to hear their concerns,” Birch said.

New Haven Public Schools Superintendent Iline Tracey declined to comment on the three security guards’ fates in detail.

Due to the fact that some things are still under investigation regarding school security, we are not at liberty to discuss,” Tracey wrote by email.

Neither Lichtenberg nor Reddish responded to requests for comment.

Board of Education member Darnell Goldson noted that some of the misconduct seemed a little trivial compared to the response.

First, I think that Chief Reddish is the consummate professional. But it does seem to me that maybe some of the accusations are maybe a little petty, two cases of water total about $10 at any grocery store, and the late check-ins seem a little much. But I do understand the argument that these little things add up, may not be everything that occurred, and are symptomatic of a larger problem which needs to be resolved,” Goldson wrote by email.

He urged the administration to make sure they treat all employees with habitual misconduct equally.

In the end I support the chief’s decisions here, the New Haven School system managers, and the city HR in their resolution of this matter, IF all employees are treated equally,” Goldson said.

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