r/nys_cs

Hypothetically…..

I have successfully completed my probation as a grade 23 employee and am considering a promotion to a grade 25 position.

While I would be on probation for the new grade 25 position, would I still be eligible to apply for transfers to other grade 23 roles (specifically those eligible under 70.1)?

Essentially, I am trying to understand my flexibility to seek a different grade 23 role should the promotion not work out as expected. Any guidance on these policies would be greatly appreciated.

1. Retro pay doesn't accrue interest when it comes late. By contrast, every bill you pay does.

2. Side letters are a thing. They can be added at any time by mutual agreement between the state and your union.

3. Political action is a thing. All public sector unions in NY have statewide and regional PACs that advocate for legislation that benefits their members.

I've worked in an NYS ITS IT-related title for New York State for around 7 years. I'm currently authorized to work via an H-4 EAD (work authorization). My renewal (I-765) was filed with USCIS well before my current card expired and is still pending — the delay is entirely on USCIS's end.

Because of a federal rule change in October 2025, H-4 EAD renewals filed after that date no longer get an automatic extension bridging the gap while a renewal is pending. So even though my renewal was filed on time, there's no valid document to show once my current card expires, and I'm now facing separation from my position in the coming weeks unless the new card arrives first.

Steps I've already taken:

• Filed a USCIS expedite request citing imminent loss of employment
• Retained an immigration attorney, who is evaluating USCIS action given how long the case has been pending
• Submitted an inquiry through my congressional representative's office

My employer's HR has told me discretionary leave/unpaid leave isn't available in this situation under internal policy. I'm trying to understand if that's consistent across state agencies or specific to how mine is handling it. In a similar gap I went through some years back, an unpaid leave arrangement was something my agency worked with me on — so I'm trying to understand what's different this time.

What I'm hoping to find out:

• Has anyone gotten a NYS agency to approve unpaid leave (LWOP) or a temporary hold on a position during a work-authorization gap like this, rather than separation?
• Does anyone know whether NYS Civil Service rules or GOER have any general provision that could apply here, independent of an individual agency's own policy?
• If you're PEF or CSEA — has your union successfully pushed back on something like this, or is a hard separation basically universal?
• Has a congressional caseworker inquiry actually moved a pending USCIS case for anyone here, and roughly how long did it take?
• Any other agencies, unions, or workarounds you've seen for this exact situation?

Given everything in motion — the expedite request, the attorney, the congressional inquiry — I'm genuinely hopeful the approval will come through and the new card could come through in the next few weeks. That's what makes full termination feel like such a disproportionate outcome here: this isn't an open-ended gap, it's a matter of bridging a short window while a process that's already moving catches up. Unpaid leave rather than separation would make all the difference. Any pointers or shared experiences would mean a lot.

Is there any way to make a positive correlation between the Civil Service canvass listings here:
https://www.cs.ny.gov/elmspublic/secure/canvasses.cfm

... and the StateJobsNY postings here:

https://statejobs.ny.gov/employees/vacancyTable.cfm

Canvass numbers and Item numbers do not seem to have any obvious relationship.

I intend to respond to each canvass, but I'm trying to find details on some and just not able to locate it on the Civil Service site.  It may never have been there.  I just think I might be wasting folks' time by responding positively to a canvasses for a position that is not remotely in my wheelhouse, based solely on the title.

Anyone else tired of all these CSEA spam calls over the contract am gonna vote no on the contract now that they keep blowing up my phone

Hi! So I have panic attacks and have an approved FMLA in place. I’m in a traineeship for two years and am doing very well to the point where I may be able to fast track and be done with my traineeship 6 months sooner, which is awesome. I was just informed that because of my approved FMLA my probation is extended 20 days. Could someone explain a bit because it’s making me nervous like I’m doing something wrong. I hate my panic attacks and don’t wish them on anyone but why am I being punished or well ….in my anxiety ridden brain because of my condition. Which I may add I am doing so much better with therapy and a bunch of other tools so I may not need FMLA next year but I love it as a safety net for me. Should I stop my FMLA all together because I don’t want to be seen as someone who can’t do the job or needs to be monitored more because my nervous system gets a little wonky sometimes. Thanks for listening this was probably more of a vent but maybe someone can help me feel better about this.

I may be potentially resigning from state service in the near future- looking at the resignation form it requires a a manager’s signature. Is it possible that my resignation could be refused?

I’ve recently just been appointed to a temporary position at the Office of Cannabis Management and was wondering a couple things:

1. The state benefits
2. Leave and how it can be utilized

The negotiating unit is CSEA & I was honestly wondering since it says 8-5 PM workdays, how does that usually go on.

For Tier 4, please explain what’s needed to retire and have free health insurance. Do you need a certain number of sick days? And if you don’t have the required amount, is health insurance offered at a discounted rate?

Just need to vent.

I just love how OGS rents out EPG for a Jehovah’s Witnesses convention at MVP on a work day without any notices to us.

Let’s leave almost no parking to state employees that we make pay for parking, so we can make more money. Were they just hoping we all took the day off because it’s a Friday before 4th of July or something?

I have an MBA and years of HR experience. I put the MBA on and try to aim towards an SG18. The problem is, I don't want to appear too overqualified and risk looking like a 'flight risk'. What would be the thing to do here? I think I have great experience...But I don't know if people see my resume and say...hmmm, he may get bored here in 3-6 months"

Shout out to anyone else sitting in their cars, not moving, waiting to get the hell outta here. Anyone know what’s going on?

Wrote up this whole thing about making a huge mistake several weeks ago resulting in total loss of confidence, loss of job satisfaction, and loss of management's confidence in me. But really, I just want to know more about the 70.1 transfer process (or other?) and ask what you would do.

I'm in a very small title with a pretty high SG. Only a couple of agencies have my title, and there's only like 20 of me statewide. I've been in this job series my whole career. Only one title exists as a transfer option for me according to GOT-IT. If a rare vacancy comes up in that title I'd be up against long-timers in that series who know their shit and deserve the promotion. I'd also have to interact with some of the same people I'm trying to hide in shame from but that's besides the point.

If I resign, what other options are there to stay in state service without having to start from scratch or needing to get more education? FWIW I have a graduate degree in a technical field so I'd be venturing into Rodney Dangerfield "Back to School" territory (minus all the awful misogyny god willing) if I had to get another degree. I have two kids in college and one in HS, so I prefer not to lose a ton of income at the moment. I'm about 9 years from maximizing my pension - soon but too long to suffer through. I'm the only one in my household working for the state so we rely upon the insurance and the pension. Plus the state may have made me soft, I don't know. I may not hack it in private worrying about billable hours, generating business, etc.

Please don't say "suck it up." I know I've been lucky in my career and I'm grateful. I just want to know if there's a way! Tell me your transfer or resignation stories.

Hi, the email I got about this was a single sentence that explained nothing. I get July 4th as a pass day holiday to be taken at another time. I assumed this would be the same as the election day floater however I see now in LATS it's not a floater, it's a new category of "holiday" that I've never seen before. Does anyone know the rules on this, can I just treat it like a floater and does it expire in a year like the floating holiday?

Hey everyone! I'm starting the downstate academy July 6th. Anyone who's been through it, what is the day to day academy experience like. How's the first day compared to the 2nd day etc. What are the workouts daily like and what do they consist of the most? Thank you in advance

Throwaway account. Using they/them/their for privacy.

Looking for advice on how to handle this professionally.

I work in a small unit with a heavy, time-sensitive workload. One person on our team consistently does far less work than everyone else, around 20 to 40 cases a day while the rest of us complete closer to 150 to 200.

Their unfinished work falls on the rest of us. They also take longer breaks than allowed, including hour long lunches and two 30-minute breaks, when we are only allowed a 30-minute lunch and two 15-minute breaks.

They also frequently sit in their relative’s office during work hours. Their relative is a director, and it appears that connection allows them to get away with things others would be disciplined for. They have allegedly said, “I can do whatever I want, I can’t get fired.”

What is the best way to address this without creating unnecessary drama, supervisor, HR, union rep, or something else?

I applied to several New York State positions today and realized after sending them that I had accidentally attached a cover letter from a different position. I think my computer duplicated one of my saved files, and I didn’t catch it before I hit send. EEK, I know. I was so a roll with applying, that even when I clicked it. My MacBook showed me the correct version, but when I had to restart my MacBook because my email was glitching. I was actually sending a different resume, one that I combined with cover letter. 😢

As soon as I realized what happened, I immediately sent a corrected email with the proper attachment. I only had to do this for the applications I submitted today.
For anyone who has worked in state HR or hiring, would something like this automatically hurt my chances, or do they generally just use the corrected version if it’s sent promptly?

I’m hoping the fact that I caught the mistake myself and corrected it right away shows attention to detail rather than carelessness, but I’m curious if anyone has experience with how these situations are typically handled?