MTA/OIG Report #2021-26 October 2021

1 MTA/OIG Report #2021-26 October 2021. Office of the Inspector General Metropolitan Transportation Authority One Penn Plaza, 11th Floor, Suite 1110. New York, NY 10119. 212-878-0000. Carolyn Pokorny MTA Inspector General October 12, 2021. Via Electronic Mail Phillip Eng president MTA Long Island Rail Road 93-02 Sutphin Blvd., 3rd Floor Jamaica, NY 11435. Re: 2 LIRR Employees Asleep While On Duty MTA/OIG #2021-26. dear mr . Eng: The Office of MTA Inspector General (OIG) received an anonymous tip to our complaint hotline that the Long Island Railroad (LIRR) overnight Crew Transportation Dispatchers at the Transportation Crew Management Office turn off the lights and sleep while on duty and that they yell at their coworkers who attempt to wake them up. On October 1, 2021, the OIG investigators conducted an unannounced visit to the LIRR.

2 Transportation Crew Office in Jamaica, Queens at 3:00 and found a Supervising Crew Dispatcher (Supervisor) and 1 of his assigned Crew Dispatchers (Dispatcher) asleep in a dark office with the lights turned off, to the point that they did not realize that the OIG investigators entered their office. They certainly would not have been capable of responding to dispatching requests via email while asleep and we question whether they would have heard dispatch calls. As detailed below, the OIG investigators observed a third Crew Dispatcher (Crew Dispatcher). sitting in his desk at the rear of the dark office, but were unable to determine whether this Crew Dispatcher was asleep when they entered, though it certainly seems likely that he, too, was asleep given the dark room. We recommend that the Supervisor and Dispatcher be disciplined as the LIRR deems appropriate, up to and including termination, and recoup any payments made to them for the October 1, 2021 shift.

3 1 We also recommend that the Crew Dispatcher be disciplined as the LIRR deems appropriate. 1. In order for the LIRR to act on the OIG's recommendations sooner, the OIG did not investigate the allegation regarding the yelling to co-workers and recommends that the LIRR address such behavior along with the recommendations above. Office of the MTA Inspector General 1. MTA/OIG Report #2021-26 October 2021. I. BACKGROUND. The Supervisor and Dispatcher are assigned to the 11:59 to 7:59 shift at the Long Island Crew Management Transportation Office (the Transportation Office) located on Sutphin Boulevard in Jamaica, Queens. The Transportation Office is tasked with dispatching crews covering transportation, craftsmen, yard masters, block operators, and conductors throughout the system. The overnight Transportation Office crew fills staffing shortages that arise overnight due to employees calling out sick and other unexpected staffing issues.

4 Employees call or email the Transportation Office if they are going to be out, and the Crew Dispatchers assign workers to fill the shortages. There are 23 employees assigned to the Transportation Office, including 4 supervisors. There are typically 2 crew dispatchers and 1. supervisor assigned to the overnight shift. The Supervisor is the Dispatcher's direct supervisor. The Supervisor was hired in 1998. as a Station Appearance Maintainer and promoted to Supervising Crew Dispatcher in 2011. The Dispatcher was hired in 1988 as a Car Appearance Maintainer and in 2016, became a crew dispatcher. The Crew Dispatcher was hired in 2000 as a Station Appearance Maintainer and became a crew dispatcher in 2010. II. INVESTIGATION. On October 1, 2021, at approximately 3:00 , OIG investigators made a surprise visit to the LIRR Transportation Office in Jamaica, Queens.

5 The investigators swiped into the Transportation Office and found the office dark. The investigators used a flashlight to observe the Supervisor and the Dispatcher each sleeping across 2 office chairs at their desks. They were completely unresponsive. The Dispatcher was sleeping across 2 desk chairs in front of his desk and was covered with a blanket. A photograph of the Dispatcher's sleeping arrangement is attached as Exhibit A. The Supervisor was sleeping in 2 office chairs that he had tied together in front of his desk, fashioning a makeshift bed. He also used a blanket. A photograph of the Supervisor's makeshift bed is attached as Exhibit B. The Dispatcher woke up to the flashlight shining in his face and asked an OIG. investigator, who are you? The investigators responded that they were from the OIG.

6 During this time, the Supervisor also woke up. The OIG asked the Supervisor who was in charge, and the Supervisor responded, I am. The OIG collected the Supervisor and Dispatcher's LIRR. identification cards. Once the lights were turned on, the OIG observed a third Crew Dispatcher sitting in his desk at the rear of the office who appeared to be awake and had his computer turned on. The Office of the MTA Inspector General 2. MTA/OIG Report #2021-26 October 2021. OIG was unable to determine whether this Crew Dispatcher was asleep when they entered the room, though it certainly seems likely that he was also sleeping, given that the room was dark. III. POLICIES AND ANALYSIS. A. MTA All-Agency Code of Ethics 1. Duty to Disclose The MTA All Agency Code of Ethics, Section , Duty to Disclose, states, in pertinent part, that employees must promptly Report any violation or potential violation of the MTA Code of Ethics.

7 Here, the Crew Dispatcher violated the Duty to Disclose by not reporting that the Supervisor and Dispatcher were sleeping while they were supposed to working. If the Crew Dispatcher was truly awake, the Crew Dispatcher was certainly aware that his colleagues were sleeping, as he was sitting with them while they were sound asleep, in a completely dark room, and the Supervisor had tied 2 chairs together to create a bed. The Dispatcher and Supervisor also failed to Report that the other was sleeping. The fact that the Supervisor tied 2 chairs together to form a bed indicates that the behavior was planned and occurred frequently and that they all participated in the inappropriate conduct. 2. Public Trust The MTA All-Agency Code of Ethics, Section , Public Trust, states, in pertinent part, that employees shall not engage in a course of conduct that will raise suspicion among the public that they are likely to be engaged in acts that are in violation of the public trust.

8 Further, employees shall avoid even the appearance that they can be improperly influenced in the performance of their official duties or induced to violate the public trust or impair their independence of judgment in the exercise of their official duties. 3. General The MTA All-Agency Code of Ethics, Section , states, in pertinent part, that employees who violate any provision of the State Ethics Laws or of this Code may be subject to disciplinary action consistent with that administered for violations of the rules and regulations of the applicable MTA Agency, up to and including termination. **. Here, the Dispatcher and the Supervisor violated the public trust by sleeping when they were supposed to be working. Their duties required them to be awake in the event a colleague was needed for dispatch.

9 The fact that the OIG found them unresponsive when entering their office leads to the question if they would have been responsive to calls for dispatch. Office of the MTA Inspector General 3. MTA/OIG Report #2021-26 October 2021. Furthermore, the Supervisor neglected his supervisory duties and failed to model appropriate behavior to his subordinate in allowing himself and his subordinate to sleep while on duty. B. LIRR Policies, Rules, and Agreement 1. LIRR Rules of the Operating Department The LIRR Rules of the Operating Department, General Rules, Section E, states, in pertinent part, that employees, on or off duty, must conduct themselves in such a manner that the Company will not be subject to criticism or loss of good will. Section E further explicitly prohibits sleeping or assuming the position of sleep.

10 Here, the Dispatcher and Supervisor subjected the LIRR to criticism from the public by violating Section E by sleeping in a dark office when they were clocked in and supposed to be working. The Supervisor certainly did not conduct himself properly as a supervisor by sleeping, allowing his subordinate to sleep while on duty, and leaving a third dispatcher in the dark, albeit the Crew Dispatcher was probably also sleeping. 2. LEAVE-001 Attendance Policy LIRR Policy # LEAVE-001, III Essential Functions, Subsection A LIRR Employees, states, in pertinent part, that LIRR employees must: (1) Report to work at the proper location, on time and in condition to perform his/her duties; and (2) remain on duty for their full tour unless otherwise excused by proper authority. Here, the Supervisor and the Dispatcher failed to meet even the most basic of their obligations to stay awake for their entire shift, thereby violating LIRR Leave Policy by not remaining on duty for their full tour.