64 N.Y.2d 898 (1985)
Employment by the Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority (MABSTOA) is at-will and can be terminated at any time without a hearing or stated reason, unless such termination violates a constitutional provision, a statute other than the Civil Service Law, a collective bargaining agreement, or an individual contract.
Summary
The New York Court of Appeals held that MABSTOA employees are at-will and can be terminated at any time without a hearing or stated reason, unless it violates another constitutional provision, statute, collective bargaining agreement or employment contract. The petitioner, a terminated MABSTOA employee, claimed his termination violated his rights to due process and free speech and created a stigma requiring a hearing. The court rejected his arguments because these claims were not properly pleaded and because he failed to demonstrate any MABSTOA procedures limiting the agency’s right to terminate employees at will. The court reversed the Appellate Division’s order and dismissed the petition.
Facts
The petitioner was an employee of the Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority (MABSTOA). MABSTOA terminated the petitioner’s employment. The petitioner then brought suit, alleging that his termination violated his constitutional rights of due process and free speech, and that it created a stigma entitling him to a hearing. He also argued that MABSTOA’s employment procedures implicitly granted him a right to a hearing before termination.
Procedural History
The lower court’s decision was not specified in this opinion. The Appellate Division entered an order that was appealed to the New York Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals reversed the order of the Appellate Division and dismissed the petition against MABSTOA.
Issue(s)
Whether MABSTOA is required to provide a hearing before terminating an employee, given the employee’s claims that the termination violated his constitutional rights and MABSTOA’s employment procedures.
Holding
No, because employment by MABSTOA may be terminated at any time, without a hearing and without reasons being stated, unless doing so would be violative of some other provision of the Constitution, a statute other than the Civil Service Law, or the provisions of a collective bargaining agreement or of an individual contract between the Authority and the employee.
Court’s Reasoning
The court reasoned that MABSTOA is not required to make appointments and promotions based on merit and fitness as outlined in the Constitution, citing Collins v. Manhattan & Bronx Surface Tr. Operating Auth. Furthermore, Public Authorities Law § 1203-a(3)(b) explicitly states that MABSTOA employees “shall not acquire civil service status.” The court stated the established rule that “Employment by MABSTOA may, therefore, be terminated at any time, without a hearing and without reasons being stated, unless doing so would be violative of some other provision of the Constitution, a statute other than the Civil Service Law, or the provisions of a collective bargaining agreement or of an individual contract between the Authority and the employee.” The court emphasized that the burden is on the employee to prove that the termination violated a constitutional, statutory, or contractual provision. Regarding the petitioner’s specific claims, the court found that the petition did not properly plead free speech or stigma claims, failing to allege public disclosure. The court also noted that the petition did not provide MABSTOA procedures suggesting any limitation on the Authority’s right to terminate employment at will. Because the petitioner failed to meet his burden of establishing a violation, MABSTOA’s right to terminate his employment at will remained unimpaired, citing Murphy v. American Home Prods. Corp. The court concluded that MABSTOA’s cross-motion to dismiss the petition should have been granted.