• Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order that bans all prison guards who participated in the recent strike from ever working for New York State again. She cited violations of a court order and the Taylor Law.
• The strike, which began on Feb. 17, was driven by concerns over forced overtime and safety issues in state prisons.
• The executive order faced criticism from lawmakers across party lines, with some calling it an overreach and others criticizing it as “vindictive.”

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New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order Monday, March 10, that will prohibit all the prison guards who were fired for not returning to work after the recent 22-day strike from working for New York state ever again. 

“There are consequences when people break the law, and that means you’re not working in our state workforce, ever,” Hochul told reporters Tuesday, March 11. 

Hochul cited violations of a court order and of the Taylor Law, which is supposed to prevent public employees from striking in order to keep essential services from being interrupted.

According to the order, the state cannot rehire those who broke the law to strike, nor can the state of New York hire them in another department.

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What led to the strike?

Union leadership at the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association also never publicly sanctioned the strike, which began Feb. 17 when thousands of workers at state prisons across New York walked off the job over forced overtime and safety concerns. 

Hochul declared a state of emergency on Feb. 19, and ultimately called in over 7,500 New York National Guard members to fill the vacant spots.  

The executive order also recommends the fired workers’ removal from the Central Registry of Police and Peace Officers for cause. This would prevent the officers from being hired as a police or peace officer in the state. 

What are lawmakers saying about Hochul’s executive order?

New York lawmakers on both sides of the aisle criticized Hochul’s decision, calling the order an overreach.

“I strongly oppose this EO and urge the governor to rescind it immediately. New York must uphold the principles of fairness and local control rather than penalizing hardworking individuals who have dedicated their careers to public service, yet felt unsafe and abandoned by New York state leadership who are soft on crime until it comes to their own workforce,” North Country Assemblyman Scott Gray, R-Watertown, said in a statement. 

Assemblyman Billy Jones, D-Chateaugay, called the executive order “vindictive.”

According to Hochul and other state officials, they made several offers and met multiple times to resolve the situation, but about 2,000 officers refused to return to work Monday by the deadline outlined in the agreement.

The governor said the taxpayers lost around $100 million, which the state spent to deal with the crisis response.