Sep 22, 2008 7:20 pm US/Eastern
Attorney General Cuomo Investigates LIRR
Wants The Rail Company To Release Disability Documents
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo (file)
AP
You're paying for it! On Monday night some former Long Island Rail Road workers were under scrutiny, accused of abusing pension benefits.
Officials want to know why nearly all retirees who apply for federal disability are getting it, with seemingly no questions asked.
Commuters were not surprised to hear some LIRR employees may be railroading the government, scamming thousands of dollars in disability pensions, while they're physically able.
Governor David Paterson and state leaders like Sen. Eric Adams are demanding a thorough investigation.
A New York Times investigation uncovered nearly every LIRR career employee, 97 percent in one year, applied for and got disability payments soon after retirement. and in recent years the LIRR's disability rate was three to four times the railroad average.
For example, disabilities resulting from arthritis and rheumatism from 2001 to 2007. Metro North had 32 cases, while the LIRR had 753. For bone and muscle diseases, Metro North had 49 cases compared to the LIRR's 850. Officials say they found the numbers alarming.
"We agree that the number of workers going out on disability is alarming," said Joe Calderone of the LIRR.
LIRR officials say they and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority have no involvement in granting disability pensions. The U.S. Rail Road Retirement Board federal agency oversees those pensions.
State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has launched an aggressive investigation. On Monday he issued subpoenas to the LIRR, calling for all the books and records related to employee disability benefits. Cuomo has been in touch with the MTA and will meet with LIRR officials this week.
The governor wants to know whether supervisors and workers conspired to inflate paychecks before retirement. Disability and pension payments are in part determined by how much a worker made in their last five years of service.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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