FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, September 2, 2025
SARATOGA, N.Y., – In case you missed it, the New York Post published the following article today:
By Vaughn Golden
“Upstate Rep. Elise Stefanik is calling on the feds to probe political foe Gov. Kathy Hochul’s handling of the massive illegal prison strike that exacerbated the crisis in state lockups earlier this year.
In a letter sent to Hochul and the US Department of Labor shared exclusively with The Post, Stefanik alleged the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision violated federal law when it canned striking corrections officers en masse, ensnaring some employees who were on legitimate leave at the time.
‘These actions represent yet another example of illegal conduct by Governor Hochul and her administration, which has shown a marked hostility toward law enforcement,’ the Republican North Country rep said of the firings in her letter to Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
Stefanik – who says she is running for governor next year but has yet to formally declare her candidacy – is also accusing DOCCS of using a vaguely-defined ‘no call list’ of corrections officers the department refuses to rehire following the strike.
She said the firings may violate the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.
‘Recently, I learned of a ‘no call list’ that includes at least 200 individuals statewide, whom the governor and the commissioner have deemed ineligible for rehire. No justification or legitimate reasons have been provided for the existence of this list,’ Stefanik’s letter said.
A spokespeople for Hochul’s office and DOCCS denied such a list exists.
‘Unlike Congresswoman Stefanik, Governor Hochul does not condone breaking the law. Corrections officers who chose to participate in the illegal work stoppage earlier this year willingly put both the incarcerated population and their colleagues who remained on the job at risk,’ a spokesperson for the governor’s office said.
A DOCCS spokesperson said the department was not actively recruiting previously fired personnel and that corrections union members who believe they were wrongfully axed can file a grievance through their collective bargaining agreement.
‘This Administration follows the law and will do so if grievances are filed, but the Governor’s commitment to reforming our correctional system is steadfast,’ Hochul’s office wrote.
At the conclusion of the nearly month-long illegal wildcat strike, Hochul fired around 2,000 corrections officers who refused to return from picket lines outside the beleaguered state prisons.
Hochul initially swore the state would never re-hire CO’s who illegally walked off the job, but quickly backtracked.
During the crisis, DOCCS had also cut off medical benefits to corrections officers who weren’t showing up to work, including some who had been on previously approved legitimate leave.
The facilities are nearly 5,000 people understaffed, per DOCCS. They’ve been propped up by a deployment of nearly 2,000 national guard troops since the strike, despite recruitment efforts.”
Click HERE to read the story in the New York Post.
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