Golf Manager Claims Race Bias by County
A 29-year Los Angeles County park employee was passed over for promotion to a management position because of his “race and ancestry,” a Civil Service hearing officer charged in documents filed this week.
The report by Huey P. Shepard, a hearing officer at the Court Arbitration Center in Torrance, concludes that John A. Castenada would have been the top applicant for the post of assistant golf director if the county had evaluated him on the basis of seniority, character and efficiency.
Instead, “one must conclude that a scheme was developed to deny him a fair evaluation for the position because of his race and ancestry,” Shepard wrote. The county’s golf director and his assistant, employed by the Department of Parks and Recreation, share responsibility for all county golf courses.
Castenada is currently manager of the county-run golf course at Lakewood Country Club.
Shepard’s report was submitted to the county Civil Service Commission, according to Rees S. Lloyd, attorney for the Los Angeles County Chicano Employees Assn.
Department of Parks and Recreation officials could not be reached for comment.
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