Some Guam Historic Preservation Office staffers threaten to quit if former SHPO Lynda Aguon is reinstated

A letter signed by some employees of the Department of Parks and Recreations Historic Resources Division calls Lynda Aguon's potential return to the job as "not workable" and says "there was a consensus of the employees that we could no longer work with Ms. Aguon" -- those are words from the letter penned by State Archeologist John Mark Joseph.

The letter to the governor expressed their shock about the possible reinstatement of Aguon as the State Historic Preservation Officer under the Department of Parks and Recreation.

Earlier this week she won the appeal of her termination from the agency and back pay. All that's needed is the decision to be formalized by Civil Service Commissioners in another meeting that's not yet been scheduled. Four commissioners failed to accept or reject an administrative law judge's decision, so Aguon won the case.

Aguon was terminated last year by DPR Director Richard Ibanez for insubordination, improper use of a government vehicle and creating a hostile work environment. It was also her very first adverse action in two decades serving as SHPO.

Joseph's letter to the governor says "her termination was only based on her actions from January to May 2019 and did not take in the years of abuse that has been endured by the employees in this office and those who have left."

According to Joseph's letter news that she would be returning to the Guam Historic Resources Division overwhelmed employees with shock.

Meanwhile, Aguon's attorney John Bell responded with the following statement about the letter and its contents.

"It looks like self-serving propaganda which the employees were likely pressured to sign," he said. "Mr. Joseph lacks credibility and it's hard to take these hearsay comments seriously. They have no legal relevance at this point."