YORK BREAKS A STATE RECORD (STILL)

           (The public service union previously referred to in this article claims that ‘as far as we are aware there are no employees of the Shire of York who are current members of our Union’.

The inference of its response is that this union does not actively seek ‘white collar’ membership from those employed in Local Government Council administration.

Its membership among public sector employees is within the Commonwealth and WA State Governments.

It suggests that the union most likely to cover senior staff of Local Government Council Administration is the Australian Services Union (ASU) not the CPSU.)

Under the State Records Act 2000, a ‘Government Organization’, (that the Shire of York Council Administration certainly is), must ensure that the government records kept by the organization properly and adequately record the performance of the organizations’ functions.

Also they are consistent with any written law to which the organization is subject when performing its functions.

Government organization record keeping plans must be complied with by the government organization (in this case the Shire of York Council Administration) and every government employee of the organization (meaning the staff employed by the Shire of York Council Administration).

These requirements are directed squarely at local government employees, not elected Council Members, and records would include local government staff employment applications and should include individual employee performance assessment records.

Shire of York Council Administration ‘Works & Services Section’ staff records show that a Christian Tarou was employed under that name in 2010/2011. The following year’s record shows a Christian Chadwick as being this employee.

Given that the former Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Shire of York Council Administration, Graeme Simpson, has clearly stated, in writing, ‘that the Shire was well aware of Mr. Chadwick’s past when his appointment was made’ leaves no explanation other than that which is unexplainable.

Unions do have an important role to play in employee/employer relations to prevent exploitation and ensure its members are treated fairly and equitably.

Conversely, a public sector union has the responsibility for ensuring that appropriate professional, moral and ethical standards are assured from its membership, in the performance of required public sector services, through meeting all reasonable community expectations.

After all the York community has a direct involvement in providing municipal funds to pay the Shire of York Council Administration employees their salaries and entitlements. Given there is around sixty staff in its employ, the overall annual wages, salaries, entitlements and logistics bill could be in excess of $3.6 million.

As we are all well aware, Mr. Christian Chadwick has, on a number of occasions, engaged in workplace bullying, harassment and racial vilification against fellow workers. His wages and entitlement cost to the York community has been compounded by large compensation claim payouts caused by his actions.

The payment of these compensation claims means there were obvious, serious violations of workplace bullying and harassment laws, administered by the Fair Work Ombudsman, and racial vilification laws- administered by the Australian Human Rights Commissioner.

Chadwick’s actions should have been referred to, and adjudicated on, by the appropriate authorities, the ‘Ombudsman’ and the ‘Commissioner. This would have most likely resulted in his instant dismissal. It is patently obvious that no appropriate external judicial process of investigation, and assessment of the required penalty, took place

Instead, it appears there is a prima face case suggesting that senior members of the Shire of York Council Administration staff, employed to ensure that all relevant occupational health and safety laws, statutes and standards required in their workplace were met, abrogated their duty of care obligations to many staff by refusing to terminate Mr. Chadwick’s employment.

This is arguably a negligent dereliction of duty to both their employer, the Shire of York Council, and to their work colleagues, thereby perpetuating an unsafe, intimidating, non-cohesive workplace environment. A particular workplace that has also been robbed three-times- because it gives a largely unfettered access to liquor, money and firearms to York’s criminal element.

The new Shire of York Council has the right to censure these employees, or terminate their contracts to best suit the circumstances, in the knowledge that this behaviour has brought the Shire of York Council into disrepute- and will continue to do so.

Whichever union these employees are members of should be extremely circumspect regarding any action it takes, in acting on their behalf.

David Taylor

            York ratepayer.