BATON ROUGE - The BREC Human Resource Complaint Resolution Committee recommended that BREC should overturn an employee's termination Tuesday following multiple hearings.

Tonya Gordon Smith said she was fired because she refused what she called improper payment orders. Gordon, who worked at BREC, said she refused to process payments that violated department policies, including using "current funds to pay old invoices."

In a letter to Interim Superintendent Janet Simmons, the Human Resource Complaint Resolution Committee said Smith should be reinstated because the cited grounds did not warrant the loss of Smith's employment; the committee also said it believed Smith's decisions were correct.

Additionally, the committee said testimony confirmed Smith's supervisor, RaHarold Lawson, was not present at the meeting where the decision to terminate Smith took place.

The committee recommended to remove documentation regarding insubordination from Smith's personal file, to pay her back wages from the date of termination and to reinstate her insurance and retirement benefits.