Rosenthal v. City of New York

OPINION OF THE COURT

Michael D. Stallman, J.

In this CPLR article 78 proceeding, union leaders seek declaratory and injunctive relief relating to the Work Experience Program (WEP) in the Parks Department. Petitioners claim that the City violated antidisplacement provisions of the State’s Welfare Reform Act of 1997, by using recipients of public assistance assigned to the City’s Work Experience Program to do the work of civil service employees.

Background

The City of New York implemented WEP programs mandated by federal and state “welfare reform” legislation in the 1990s that required public…