Fire Dispatchers’ Suspensions Reversed

A Louisiana state appeals court has reversed the discipline handed out to two New Orleans fire dispatchers for their absence after Hurricane Katrina. The 4th Circuit Court of Appeal said the 30 and 60-day suspensions given dispatchers Eddie Fuller and Wanda Newsome respectively were based on an “arbitrary and capricious” deadline to return to work. Fuller was on duty and evacuated to Baton Rouge when Katrina struck, while Newsome was on vacation. The New Orleans Fire Department set a Sept. 22nd date for all employees to return to work, but Fuller returned Sept. 30th and Newsome on Sept. 29th. A Peer Review Board handed out the suspensions, which the Civil Service Commission upheld. The dispatchers appealed to the state court, which ruled 3-0 that, “In our opinion, these two firefighters, both with unblemished disciplinary records, did the best they could under horrific circumstances to return to work as quickly as possible.” Fuller testified that he continuously tried to telephone the department to determine when to report, but could not get through. Newsome was in Atlanta and had similar trouble reaching anyone with definitive information on returning to work. [The court’s decision is not yet posted on-line.]