Some of Workers Fired in Zoo Probe Win Jobs Back

Some of the 19 employees fired in December after an investigation into theft and drug use at the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park have been reinstated after grievance hearings, zoo officials said Thursday.

Zoo spokesman Jeff Jouett said some disciplinary actions have been reversed, but he declined to say how many employees have been rehired or whether they are back at work. He also said some of the firings have been sustained but refused to say how many.

Other sources who requested anonymity said at least three employees have been reinstated.

Half of Cases Heard

Jouett said the firings were reversed after several grievance sessions before the Board of Justice hearing. The board is staffed by two members each from management and Teamsters Local 481, which represents zoo and park employees. Sources who spoke with The Times said about half of the 19 cases have been heard by the board.

Bill Martin, secretary-treasurer of Local 481, declined to comment on the reinstatements or the grievance hearings.

Jouett said zoo officials will not comment until all of the grievances are heard.

“The feeling is that it could impact the fairness and impartiality of the remaining hearings,” Jouett said. “It’s a question of giving due process in a fair forum for our employees. . . . The board is a part of the normal process and charged with resolving grievances fairly and impartially. Under the contract, the board has the power to sustain, modify or reverse disciplinary decisions.”

He declined to say whether the reinstatements mean that the fired employees had not done anything wrong.

Last year, officials at the zoo and Wild Animal Park hired a private firm to do a four-month in-house investigation of alleged drug activity and theft at the two attractions. The investigation concluded in December, when about 60 employees were rounded up and questioned by the company’s investigators.