NC DMV agrees to rehire fired whistle-blower

RALEIGH -- A North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles whistle-blower who reported on agency wrongdoing is getting his job back under a legal settlement signed this week. The News & Observer of Raleigh reported Friday that Ken Cassidy was fired from his job as an assistant supervisor in the DMV's License and Theft Bureau in March 2008. He was accused of violating an order not to talk to any DMV employees in the emissions program. Cassidy had told the newspaper months earlier about improper hiring and that some emissions staff had so little work to do that they finished by lunchtime. Cassidy appealed his dismissal and under a settlement signed Wednesday he will get his job back along with more than $77,000 in back pay. (Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)