Former Schools Development Authority workers file lawsuit against Murphy administration

Five former employees of the Schools Development Authority filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the Murphy administration claiming they were illegally fired to make room for people with political connections, the latest legal complication stemming from the brief reign of former CEO Lizette Delgado-Polanco.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court by Daniel Sweetser, a Lawrenceville attorney who brought a similar suit against the state more than a decade ago alleging that politics influenced personnel decisions and won a $1.25 million settlement. He made similar claims in the latest complaint.

The former workers were terminated last September in a restructuring Delgado-Polanco had explained as necessary for efficiency and to carry out the agency’s plans as it sought to borrow billions of dollars for construction projects. The authority's debt already costs taxpayers $1 billion a year, and it is seeking to add more to fulfill its mission of building schools in the state's 31 poorest districts.

But the longtime workers who were fired were replaced by people who had personal and political connections to Delgado-Polanco, did not meet basic qualifications and were hired outside of the agency’s hiring process, drawing accusations of patronage.

Read more: https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2019/07/02/nj-schools-development-authority-former-workers-sue-murphy-administration/1620930001/