Sea World Fires 33, Reinstates 53 in Probe

Of the 86 Sea World employees suspended recently after an internal probe of alleged theft and drug abuse, 33 have been fired for wrongdoing and 53 have been reinstated, park officials said Monday.

Dan LeBlanc, a spokesman for the private marine park, said that, by the end of this week, Sea World will give local police its findings on the 33 dismissed employees, who were accused of infractions ranging from theft of merchandise or money to repeated drug use.

Of the 53 reinstated employees, several were witnesses and were not suspected of wrongdoing, LeBlanc said. Several others, however, were accused of using drugs at work and will be offered participation in a voluntary substance-abuse rehabilitation program at Sea World’s expense.

“We have a lot of employees who are coming back who are getting another chance,” LeBlanc said, adding that those employees will receive strict supervision. “We don’t want them to be coming to the park high. In these cases, we have the right to implement random drug testing for 12 months. We don’t like intrusive forms of supervision, but I think it’s warranted in this case.”

The suspensions resulted after a months-long investigation conducted by Narcorp, a private detective firm that specializes in undercover narcotics enforcement. Last week, some Sea World employees complained that Narcorp had used bullying tactics to coerce confessions. On Monday, some employees who had been dismissed said they felt tricked into incriminating themselves.

LeBlanc said mostly low-level employees were involved in the inquiry.

Ginger Craddock, 23, said she was originally accused of alcoholism but was fired from her job on Captain Kidd’s Boardwalk for “insufficient handling of company funds.”

“It was just a witch hunt,” said Craddock, who denied any wrongdoing. “They asked me, ‘Do you want to resign?’ I said, ‘If you all want to get rid of me, you are going to have to fire me.’ I knew I was in the right.”

But LeBlanc said he has complete confidence in Narcorp’s methods.

“I, myself, after listening to (employees’ allegations), went and listened to tapes of interviews. I was extremely satisfied with what Narcorp did. The people we released we thought were guilty,” he said, adding that employees who feel they were treated unfairly can file a grievance.

Julie Kloster, a 19-year-old student at Southwestern College, had been at Sea World for nearly two years before she was asked to resign. She said that, during a three-hour interview, investigators first accused her of using drugs but then backed off.

Kloster said she was given a choice of resigning or being fired because she admitted taking a small stuffed rabbit home after a customer won it and then left it behind.

“They set us up,” she said. “They made you confess so that they could fire you. You know, ‘Honesty is the best policy’? That sure isn’t true here, is it?”

When told of Kloster’s comments, LeBlanc responded, “Stealing is against company policy and is grounds for dismissal.”