Social Services Employees Union Local 371 ex rel. Opuoro v. City of New York Administration for Children's Services

**Union Worker's Reinstatement Overturned After Criminal Conviction** This case involved a New York City child services employee who was fired after being criminally convicted of misusing confidential information from the employer's database. The employee's union filed a grievance, and an arbitrator initially ordered the city to reinstate the worker to their job. However, the city appealed this decision to the court. The appellate court sided with the city, ruling that the arbitrator's decision to reinstate the employee was "irrational and defied common sense" given the worker's criminal conviction for misusing employer data. The court sent the case back to a different arbitrator to reconsider what the appropriate penalty should be. **What this means for workers:** This ruling shows that workers cannot always count on getting their jobs back through the grievance process, even with union representation. When employees are convicted of crimes directly related to their work duties—especially involving confidentiality breaches—courts may overturn arbitrator decisions that seem too lenient. Workers in positions requiring access to sensitive information should understand that criminal misuse of that data will likely result in permanent job loss, regardless of union protections.