Calif. town rehires 14 lifeguards fired over spoof video
EL MONTE, Calif. Fourteen Southern California lifeguards fired for making a parody video in uniform and at the pool will get their jobs back.
The San Gabriel Valley Tribune reports the El Monte City Council voted Tuesday to rehire the workers pending a review of center management, policies and procedures.
The lifeguards were fired last month after making a parody of the "Gangnam Style" video by Korean rapper PSY.
The video showed lifeguards in their city-issued swimsuits dancing underwater and on diving boards at the Aquatic Center.
City officials say the workers violated employee conduct standards and prohibitions on use of city property.
The lifeguards say they were off the clock when they made the spoof.
Last month, fired lifeguard Juliet Gilek told CBS News, "I was in shock. Because I really didn't think that it would escalate to termination. ... I loved what I did. I loved teaching the kids. I loved making sure everybody was safe. So I would never have wanted to hurt the pool in any way. This was just a fun thing to capture our memories with."
The tribute video called "Lifeguard Style", has been viewed more than 2 million times since being posted on YouTube three months ago.