By Scott Axelrod
Staten Island Advance
NEW YORK — The FDNY has a issued a new policy barring department supervisors from engaging in romantic relationships with underlings, the New York Post is reporting.
“Managers and supervisors are prohibited from engaging in any romantic or intimate relationship with a subordinate they routinely supervise,” the directive states.
Should an employee “anticipate” a romantic relationship with a subordinate, “both parties are obligated to confidentially notify the Deputy Commissioner of Human Capital .” A report of such a relationship would see one of the participating parties transferred, the report said.
According to the outlet, the newly enacted policy has been put into place in the hopes of reducing sexual harassment claims, which have plagued the department over the last several years.
In one of those claims, $350,000 was forked over by the city to EMT Angelina Pivarnick, a Staten Island-based former member of the “Jersey Shore” crew who alleged that one supervisor had made inappropriate requests to her, while a second groped her, the report said.
And while the policy doesn’t prohibit relationships between members of the same rank who work in the same unit or facility, it does “frown upon it,” the report says.
The policy was reportedly considered several years ago, but was never put into place by previous FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh. But, following the news that NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey had allegedly engaged in a quid pro quo for sexual favors in exchange for overtime pay with NYPD Lt. Quathisha Epps, the FDNY brass took a closer look at officially putting its own policy into place, the report said.
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