Whistleblowers could get compo
Whistleblowers who flagged fraudulent activity by former Ministry of Transport boss Joanne Harrison should be offered compensation, according to a State Services Commission report.
Harrison was jailed for three years and seven months in February for her $725,000 fraud of the ministry.
Staff who alerted bosses to Harrison’s behaviour and conduct were made redundant, and while the report says that wasn’t directly related to Harrison getting rid of them, what followed was alarming, said State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes.
‘‘While there is no definitive evidence that Joanne Harrison engineered the process to exit these staff, the convergence of events that took place and her involvement in providing advice gives me cause for concern.’’
The staff were made redundant as part of a restructuring just before Christmas, and seven months earlier than they needed to be, the report found. The timing of their redundancies were based on advice from Harrison.
‘‘These public servants should never have been disadvantaged because they did the right thing,’’ Hughes said. ‘‘It is vital that public servants can raise concerns about suspected wrongdoing safely and without fear of punishment or reprisal.’’
Hughes described Harrison as a ‘‘highly manipulative individual who wreaked havoc’’ within the ministry.
He said his organisation was working at ways of modernising the way whistleblowers could alert authorities, via the Protected Disclosures Act.
The SSC made its findings public yesterday afternoon. The investigation was handled by former deputy State Services Commissioner Sandi Beatie. She recommended that the former staff receive an apology and that the SSC should offer compensation.
Hughes said the three employees made redundant would get redress that would make up for the salary they lost in being made redundant early, and compensation for the hurt and humiliation they had suffered.
‘‘I have met with these former staff members and their families,’’ he said. ‘‘I thanked them for their public service and apologised to them for the treatment they received after raising genuine and well-founded concerns. I repeat that apology publicly.’’
‘‘What they did took great courage, and I’m satisfied that we’ve done the right thing as far as we can . . . to put things right.’’
In her report, Beatie said she encountered a deep sense of betrayal created by Harrison’s actions, which was still fresh in the minds of those who worked closely with her. There was a clear sense of being let down by her.
When it came to blowing the whistle, some individuals described it as the ‘‘nuclear’’ option and said they feared repercussions.
A former member of the ministry’s legal team was also targeted by Harrison, who stopped this person getting a pay rise. The ministry was now making sure this employee got the pay rise, Hughes said.
Beatie’s report also found two other cases where MOT staff may have been treated badly by Harrison, but they were not whistleblowers, so fell outside Beatie’s investigation.
The first was an employee who wanted to go to a professional development course. This was approved by their manager, but declined by Harrison. The same person had expected a more senior role, reporting to Harrison, but it never came about.
The second employee, who worked in Harrison’s group, came back from sick leave to find they had been demoted.
They did not pursue the matter as they were still recovering from their illness. Because the employee did not raise issues about Harrison’s conduct at the time, Beatie did not investigate further.
Those matters have been referred to MOT chief executive Peter Mersi.
Wellington employment lawyer Alan Knowsley the ministry might also consider an ex gratia payment given the way the staff were treated.
‘‘It’s very important for employers to take note of issues like this and not shoot the messenger and properly investigate and deal with it – it doesn’t matter how senior the person is who’s having issues raised about them, a proper investigation should be carried out.’’
Knowsley said whistleblowers should also be protected from any retaliatory action.
Former chief executive Martin Matthews, who was Harrison’s boss while at the ministry, has been appointed auditor-general and is the subject of a separate investigation.
Mersi welcomed the report and said he was committed to making sure MOT staff could raise concerns safely.
‘‘These former staff members did the right thing and they should never have been disadvantaged because of that. I apologise to these people for what happened.’’