RETURNING TO WORK
Larry Yarbrough, fired last year for allegedly hanging a noose above a black colleague’s desk in the Torrance Water Division, will get his job back.
The Torrance Civil Service Commission voted 4 to 3 Monday night in a closed meeting to give Yarbrough more than $40,000 in back pay and his old job.
In March, an independent arbitrator decided that Torrance did not have just cause to fire Yarbrough, a white technician, after a noose was found above the desk of Alan Lee, a black meter reader with the water department.
Yarbrough told city officials he found the rope on the floor, tripped over it and tossed it aside. After working for the city for 14 years, Yarbrough was fired Sept. 7 for the July 27 incident.
The Civil Service Commission must adopt a final written proposal at its May 13 meeting before Yarbrough is reinstated.
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