Kathleen Lucadamo of the Daily News reports that documents containing the Social Security numbers of 3,700 members of the Office of Staff Analysts union went missing after New York City’s Office of Payroll Administration mailed them to union headquarters. The package, sent “certified, return-receipt mail” – never arrived. There is no indication as to why it took the city from November until last month to notify those affected (SEE UPDATE BELOW).
Update: The NY Times reports that the number is 3,470 employees, and has more on the breach:
The November report for the Organization of Staff Analysts was sent on Dec. 12 by certified mail, with return receipt requested, and was signed for on Dec. 15. But on Jan. 25, the union called and said it still had not received the report and that no one had signed for it. The name listed on the return receipt — Jacobs — is not a name anyone at the union’s office recognized, said Robert J. Croghan, the union’s chairman. The city is still trying to locate the package.
The City of New York Office of Payroll Administration most definitely has proven to have a problem with mail. I can prove that they neglected to mail to me at my proper mailing address notification of a tax refund I was entitled to in the mid 1990s until 2006. After I discovered this fact in 2007 I also learned that The City of New York Office of Payroll Administration failed to locate through the mail 1000 other employees who were also entitled to this money. This money to be paid out was the result of a class action lawsuit Doctors Council vs. NYCERS. Any teacher who taught for the City of NY through the NYC Bd of Ed between the years 1987 – 1991 was entitled to a huge refund because they overpaid into social security and medicare. Now this money can no longer be paid out because The City of New York Office of Payroll Administration says went back in part to the City of New York and the US Treasury. The City of New York of Payroll Administration cannot even document the names of all people they failed to pay out nor can they prove to me they mailed me notification. They believe that just because they mailed letters and they were returned as undeliverable, that they did all they could. And they believe just because they posted announcements in newspapers they are not responsible for failure to notify people. Not everyone reads the papers they posted in. They are so incompetent they failed to apply proper search efforts to properly locate and inform people. They are absolutely impossible to talk to nor reason with. They go out of their way to avoid answering questions. The City of New York of Payroll Administration has proven negligent and for further information, the writer of this article may contact me. Someone needs to organize a class action lawsuit against The City of New York Office of Payroll Administration on behalf of all those who were not properly notified.