Earlier this morning, during a session of the Second Circuit Court, Davidson County Circuit Court Judge Amanda McClendon announced her decision to deny a preliminary injunction, sought by TSEA, that would have prevented the state from laying off more than 200 state workers until those workers had received 60-days of job placement, job testing and career counseling.
TSEA is disappointed by the Judge’s decision today to deny the injunction; however, the Association is pleased that NeoGov (the job portal for state jobs) was online throughout the final six (6) days of the Temporary Restraining Order. “The restraining order kept hundreds of laid off employees on the job for another week. It also gave them a chance they wouldn’t have had otherwise to review and apply for any of the 255 open state jobs“, said TSEA Executive Director Robert O’Connell. This window of opportunity would not have been open without the TSEA lawsuit having been filed.
Those employees whose last day was scheduled to be last week at some point can now expect their last day to be today or tomorrow, depending on when the state files the Judge’s order.
TSEA remains strongly interested in how the recent RIF’s were conducted. It is important, as RIF’d employees go through this difficult process, that the law regarding RIFs is followed precisely.
If you were RIF’d, and you believe there were other people in your job classification, in your shop, who were not RIF’d even though they had less seniority and/or a less favorable disciplinary record than you, we encourage you to notify TSEA immediately! We also believe it is important to address any age, gender, or race discrimination encountered in the RIF process.
If you were RIF’d and wish to report a violation as outlined above, click here
