No vote on Huntington's proposed red-light violation policy

A proposed policy that would have allowed the Town of Huntington to fire employees if they were charged with four red-light violations in a two-year period never came to a vote at the town board meeting Tuesday night.

Councilman Mark Cuthbertson offered the resolution at the meeting, but it never got a second.

Councilman Mark Mayoka was the most vocal in his opposition.

“I think that it is excessive,” Mayoka said of the proposed penalty. “Maybe an additional suspension would suffice or maybe prohibiting the person from using the town vehicle going forward.”

Cuthbertson said the policy was “something our personnel department worked out with the union.”

“It seemed like a good idea to have a policy,” he added.

The proposed policy said permanent, full-time employees charged with the red-light violations will be punished depending on how many violations they have in a two-year period.

According to town documents, one violation would require the employee to pay the fine and he or she would be issued a written warning to be placed in the employee’s personnel file.

For a second violation, the employee would have to pay the fine and would be suspended without pay for a day. A vacation day could be forfeited in lieu of the suspension.

A third violation would require the employee to pay the fine and be suspended without pay for two days.

After a fourth violation, the employee would be terminated “pursuant to the terms of the employees’ collective bargaining agreement and/or New York State Civil Law, Section 75.”

Under the policy, penalties would have been applied to permanent part-time employees on a prorated basis. Nonpermanent, seasonal and/or summer casual employees would be disciplined at the discretion of the department head “with consideration to their length of service and overall employment record.”