Ferry disturbing
'Harassed' asst. captain: Riders are being imperiled
Staten Island Ferry passengers are being endangered by rampant sexual harassment of employees on the boats, one skipper claims.
Assistant Capt. Kristen Andoos, 34, says some coworkers are so intent on ostracizing her after she reported harassment that they ignore her communications out on the water.
When the ferries pass in the harbor, with one heading to Manhattan and the other to St. George, they typically communicate via radio on how the boats will go by one another, either port to port or starboard to starboard. The practice ensures that skippers know “how they’ll be acting when they come in close proximity to each other,” said Andoos’ lawyer, Paul Youkilis.
Those who ignore her radio messages from the bridge put the safety of passengers at risk, Andoos says in her Brooklyn federal court filing against the city, the Department of Transportation and several ferry employees.
The trouble started in 2011 when Andoos reported to her bosses and police that Capt. Earle Ferenczy was allegedly making unwanted sexual advances.
Ferenczy, 60, was suspended, put on probation and ordered to stay away from Andoos, but the punishment had little effect, the suit says. After returning to work, the married father of four allegedly cornered her by a copying machine, she claims in court papers. Ferenczy could not be reached for comment.
Andoos reported his behavior again, only to have bosses switch her to a different vessel instead of moving Ferenczy, she claims.
When she complained about the supervisors failure to keep Ferenczy away from her, a supervisor allegedly dismissed her concerns, saying the alleged harasser was not “the boogeyman . . . he doesn’t have weapons,” according to the claim.
Andoos has been pursu- ing a promotion to captain since 2012. Eight men with less tenure than Andoos have been given the rank since then. One woman was promoted to the position in October, but only because bosses knew she was about to leave for another job, Andoos alleges.
The city “does not tolerate sexual harassment,” said a DOT spokesman who added that the ferry’s safety standards are strict, and the city will review the complaint and “take action if the allegations are true.”