Houma fire truck operator reinstated, gets back-pay

Saying they could not determine “one way or another” as to whether a terminated fireman received permission to be late for work because of a family emergency, the Houma Municipal Police and Fire Civil Service Board voted 4-1 to reinstate the city employee and to pay him 10 months worth of back pay.

The board voted to re-hire 48-year-old fire equipment officer Michael Jones, a 27-year veteran employee, after former Parish President Don Schwab fired him last summer for habitual tardiness, failure to appear at a reprimand hearing and for not receiving proper permission to be late for work on June 30, 2007, because of a family emergency.

The termination was made at the recommendation of Fire Chief Daniel Scott and others, including District Fire Chief Jerry LaBouve.

However, four members of the civil service board said evidence was lacking as to whether Jones did or did not receive the proper permission, so they voted Friday to give him his job back with back-pay.

Those members voting in favor were: Calvin Jones, Houma Fire Department Capt Heyward Simms, Houma Police Lt. John Chapman, and member Doug Levron.

Voting against the idea was retired policeman and Board Member Clay Naquin, who thought the city had proved its argument against Jones.

After reviewing the fire department paperwork, board member Calvin Jones said, “… there is no indication of a ‘no’ or a ‘yes’ as to whether or not Michael Jones got permission from his supervisor for the emergency leave.”

“No one documented anywhere that Mr. Jones was out of line,” Levron added, after reviewing the fire department’s inter-office memorandums.

“By reviewing these documents, I can’t tell whether permission was given or not given,” Simms said.

Scott was disgruntled after the meeting, saying, “This is very inappropriate. They ignored our ability to disciple. They ignored our decision to discipline.”

Scott suggested that the board failed to place themselves “in our shoes” before making a final decision about Jones.

Naquin said he believed that Michael Jones’ recollection was not true. “I do not believe it all took place like that,” he said.

Michael Jones made only one statement after the hearing: “I’m glad this is over.’

Jones had not worked as a fireman since last summer. He is a fire department truck driver.

“On the morning of June 30, I received a call from daughter at about 6:10 in the morning saying she was in a very intense situation and I needed to get to her. … It involved the police and a couple of other things … she called me and said her car keys were missing and someone was threatening to kill her,” Jones said during the hearing.

“When you get a call like that and you’ve got children, the first thing is to react because you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. I was talking to her on one phone, and calling District Fire Chief Jerry LaBouve on the other,” he said.

“In short, he told me, ‘OK Mike, you go to do what you have to do,'” he said.

“I told him, ‘I will be back at work as soon as this is over.’ That was before 1:30 (p.m.) or so,” Jones said. “Had he told me no, I would not have gone.”

Michael Jones Houma fire equipment officer