Matter of Richard J. Sherwood v Town of Lancaster

In this Article 78 case, the petitioner sought to appeal the Supreme Court ruling that he was ineligible to receive credit for unused vacation and sick leave accrued as of the date of his retirement.

According to the Appellate Division, petitioner resigned from his position as Town Attorney, therefore making him ineligible for a credit of unused vacation days. Because the petitioner chose to resign effective immediately, he is not entitled to that credit, which follows the explicit terms of Article 3 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Petitioner’s also alleges that he is entitled to credit for unused sick days, which falls under Article 5 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. The court concluded that the CBA provisions concerning retirement unambiguously apply to petitioner, entitling him to a credit for unused sick leave that he accrued. Previously, the court made a mistake in concluding that Article 5 of the CBA applied only to those who have actually applied for retirement through NYS Employee’s Retirement System to receive credit for accumulated sick days. The CBA stated nothing to this effect. Therefore, the court concluded that the retirement stated in Article 5 of the CBA applies to the petitioner, making him eligible to a credit for accrued sick days.

The judgment was modified. Petitioner’s claims under the CBA and under the Retirement and Social Security Law § 41 (j) were granted for only the accumulated sick days from the date of petitioner’s reappointment as Town Attorney through the date of his retirement.

Read more about this Article 78 employment case here.

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