Some maintenance workers with the Vancouver school district are protesting the discipline they received last year after an internal investigation concluded that 15 were routinely viewing and exchanging pornography on their worksite computers.
District officials won't divulge details, but an arbitrator's ruling indicates four employees were fired, nine were given short-term suspensions, one was handed a letter of warning and another was still under investigation for the misconduct, which was uncovered after a human resources manager received an anonymous telephone tip.
Several of the workers protested the punishment, with one of the fired workers -Aubrey Hawco -arguing through his union that the district had not provided specific policies nor training that would have warned him not to view pornography at work. Furthermore, management did not object to the open display of pin-up calendars and similar material at the worksite, the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America (UBCJA) told an arbitration hearing.
Hawco had worked for the district for 12 years and had an otherwise clean disciplinary record, the union noted. As a carpenter, he had performed maintenance and repair work throughout the district and used a computer provided by his employer.
But arbitrator Vince Ready rejected Hawco's excuses, saying common sense would dictate that viewing pornography -including some "disturbingly graphic" materials -on the job is unacceptable, especially at a workplace involved with the care and education of children.
He backed the district's decision to fire Hawco, whom some described as a ringleader, stating in a ruling last year that his "voluminous pornographic email activity represents a patent breach of the employer's trust." Hawco, 41, admitted he had been receiving and sharing pornography daily for two years, using his Vancouver school district email address.
education news at vancouversun.com/reportcard
No comments:
Post a Comment