Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone
A fire captain and a dispatcher who were terminated for having sex in the fire chief’s office while on duty have been ordered reinstated by a British Columbia Arbitration Panel. Fire Captain Brent Bond and dispatcher Cara-Leigh Manahan were terminated from the Vernon Fire Department last year.
The couple was caught having sex in the fire chief’s office on a security cam the fire chief installed. Through their union, they grieved their terminations
The majority of the arbitration panel concluded that while Bond and Manahan deserved “harsh discipline,” termination was an “excessive disciplinary response.” Both were ordered rehired without backpay.
Bond was demoted to firefighter. The outcome is a bit trickier for Manahan as the city contracted out dispatching services. She will be entitled to what ever severance or benefit she would have been entitled to when her job was eliminated.
The city is reported to be contemplating its legal options.
