The Department of Education has filed suit to keep at least 82 New York City teachers suspended without pay for allegedly submitting fake proof of COVID-19 vaccination.
The staffers were notified on April 19 that they would be placed on unpaid leave April 25 “based on information that the DOE had received from an independent law-enforcement agency that their proof of COVID-19 vaccination was fraudulent,” according to the Manhattan Supreme Court lawsuit filed late Tuesday.
The workers, including teachers, were also told to respond to the DOE email if they didn’t believe the allegations were true.
The United Federation of Teachers has said some of its members reached out to the DOE to say they received the notice as a mistake.
Dozens have claimed they got the jab at a Long Island pediatric center known for offering holistic and natural remedies — where two nurses were charged for allegedly doling out fake vax cards to hundreds of customers, The Post has previously reported.
Teachers who spoke to The Post admitted to paying Wild Child Pediatric Healthcare in Amityville — but for “detox” treatment to offset reactions to the vaccine, not for the cards.
An arbitrator found on June 27 that the DOE had violated the staffers’ “due-process protection” and told the department and the union to meet Tuesday and try to come to an agreement over the issue, the filing says.
Now, the DOE is asking a judge to find that the arbitrator didn’t have the authority to intervene in the matter.
If the arbitrator’s decision isn’t overturned, it “will undermine the DOE’s ability to ensure compliance with the DOE vaccine mandate and thereby jeopardize the health and safety of students and their families, DOE staff, and the broader community,” the suit alleges.
The DOE is asking for an emergency and permanent injunction from the court.
“These employees were afforded due process,” a spokesman for the city Law Department said in a statement. “There is no lawful basis for this arbitrator’s decision, which undermines DOE’s authority to enforce an important public health initiative protecting students, school staff and the broader community.”
The spokesman added that DOE was notified that the teachers they suspended are being investigated by law enforcement.
“Unhappy with the arbitrator’s decision, the DOE has now tried to appeal the arbitrator’s ruling,” a UFT spokeswoman said. “We are confident that on reviewing the record the courts will support the arbitrator’s stand.”
The DOE didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
