Correction Officers File Lawsuit Against New York State

Nineteen former correction officers have filed a federal class-action lawsuit accusing New York State of firing them during their legally protected medical and family leave.

2025 has been an extremely tough year for correction officers across New York State. It started back in February when many state-employed correction officers refused to report to work until New York officials began to address various issues, including staffing shortages, forced overtime, and safety.

The strike, which lasted three weeks, was a highly publicized effort by correction officers to try and get New York to improve working and safety conditions at various facilities in New York.

Correction Officers Strike in New York

The strike ended on March 10th when it was announced that New York officials reached an agreement with the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association that addressed officers' concerns. At the time, reports stated that the agreement required at least 85% of striking officers to return to work by the March 10th deadline, and if they didn't, they would be terminated.

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Some 2,000 officers who remained on strike after the deadline were later fired.

Fired Correction Officers File Lawsuit Against New York

Nineteen of the fired correction officers recently filed a federal class-action lawsuit that accuses New York State of firing them during legally protected medical and family leave. The lawsuit, which was filed on May 30 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, accuses New York of violating the Family and Medical Leave Act when it fired the officers and terminated their health benefits in March.

Any worker who is eligible for FMLA is allowed to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, protected leave for personal or family medical reasons, and employers are required to maintain health coverage during approved leave and must reinstate the worker afterward, according to WTEN.

The lawsuit, which names numerous defendants including New York Governor Kathy Hochul and dozens of prison superintendents, claims that New York didn't follow those rules and denied officers access to temporary healthcare, unemployment, and retirement payouts.

Each of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit claims they were out on approved FMLA leave when they were fired and had their health insurance canceled. They are seeking lost wages, lost benefits, attorney fees, and their old jobs back, along with health coverage.