Richard Marles staffer Jo Tarnawsky alleges she was ‘bullied’ out of her job

The Deputy Prime Minister’s chief of staff Jo Tarnawsky says he abandoned her when she complained of bullying and she was subjected to treatment that was ‘cowardly and cruel.’

Richard Marles' chief of staff Jo Tarnawsky says she was bullied in his office.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles’ chief of staff Jo Tarnawsky says she was “bullied” by staff members, abandoned by the minister after she complained and subjected to treatment that was “cowardly, cruel and completely unnecessary”.

Ms Tarnawsky claimed Mr Marles made the call to effectively remove her from the senior position — despite her still officially holding the role — after she complained to him about “misconduct” and “bullying” from other staff.

Flagging the likelihood of her leaving Mr Marles’ office after going public with her concerns, Ms Tarnawsky said it “won’t be long until I am bullied out of this place completely”.

Her lawyer said support services for parliamentary staff set up following a landmark review into the workplace culture in Parliament House by former Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins had been “involved”, but did not specify if a formal complaint had been made.

Ms Tarnawsky has not yet filed legal action, has not publicly called for compensation and is not expecting to return to her role.

While not ruling out future legal action against the government, Ms Tarnawsky said her intention for going public was so the people involved with her sidelining were held “accountable”.

A visibly shaking Ms Tarnawsky fronted the media at Parliament House on Thursday, the last day of the sitting week when Mr Marles was also Acting Prime Minister, declaring that she was the “most senior female chief of staff on the hill” but her workplace was not “safe”.

The politically damaging allegation that she has been moved into another temporary role and barred from entering Mr Marles’ office without notice despite still officially holding the chief of staff role, undermines the Albanese government’s promise to create a safer parliamentary workplace. 

“The events of the last five months have been devastating, cut from my job and ostracised without warning,” she said.

“People have been unaware of my real situation. I have been plagued with nightmares, flashbacks, symptoms of depression and anxiety, panic attacks and suicidal thoughts. I had none of these symptoms before May 2024.”

Ms Tarnawsky alleges the government had failed to follow “fair process” and she had been effectively removed from her position without warning, after Mr Marles assured her before directing her to take forced leave to “trust” him. She claimed that when she returned Anthony Albanese’s chief of staff Tim Gartrell told her she would never return to the role.

Marque Lawyers managing partner Michael Bradley, who is representing Ms Tarnawsky, said he has not filed court action and was “not anticipating litigation”. He said he expected the government to “take accountability from what it’s done” and solve the problem.

“We look forward to hearing from the government as to how it proposes to deal with the situation,” Mr Bradley said.

“I mean, effectively the present status is that Jo is still the chief of staff to the Deputy Prime Minister, but unable to perform her job. In fact, unable to even enter their office.

“That’s an untenable state of affairs, and it’s up to the government to resolve that. She can’t resolve it.”

Mr Bradley said his client was not alleging that Mr Marles was involved in the “bullying” and “misconduct within the office” which led to her making a complaint. Only that he had made the call to “take her job away from her and sideline her” after she complained.

In response to questions probing if Ms Tarnawsky had bullied other staff herself, controlled access to Mr Marles for others and demanded all contact with the minister go through her, Mr Bradley said there was “no suggestion” his client had engaged in such conduct.

When asked if Ms Tarnawsky was seeking to resume her old job or was demanding compensation, Mr Bradley said his client had “made clear in her statement what she wants”.

Ms Tarnawsky alleged her position in Mr Marles’ office began to unravel shortly after she successfully salvaged his trip to Ukraine when his schedule broke down in April. She said she texted the Defence Minister to inform him of the “bullying” behaviour she had experienced.

After four months in limbo since her return to work in June, Ms Tarnawsky said she had been inspired to speak out by her daughter in the hope that she could “help others”.

“Ultimately, it was my daughter who convinced me to come forward when I was in a completely broken state a few weeks ago,” she said.

“She said, ‘Mum, maybe you’ve told people the truth, maybe someone would help you’.

“Bullying thrives in an environment of silence. We tell our kids if you have a secret or problem that feels overwhelming, to speak up, even if your voice shakes.”

Peter Dutton said Ms Tarnawsky is “incredibly brave” and she had “credibility” alleging that Mr Marles and his office mishandled “bullying” complaints.

“She’s obviously a person who’s well accomplished, having worked for the former Governor-General and been a senior bureaucrat and diplomat,” the Opposition Leader told 2GB.

“So she has credibility, and her story’s very concerning.

“And I just don’t think it’s something the government can let go through to the keeper, there needs to be a statement from the government.”

Mr Dutton said “it’s very unusual that you would have somebody that senior put off into – essentially – a room to work by themselves, or they need to give 24-hours notice to come into the office”.

Mr Dutton said “this is not the first time the Prime Minister has been embroiled in these sorts of matters”.

“Kimberley Kitching was the subject of severe bullying by Katy Gallagher and Penny Wong, and tragically, you know, Kimberley Kitching, who was a wonderful person, lost her life, and it was a very poor reflection on Katy Gallagher and Penny Wong,” he said.

“The government runs a double standard, there’s no doubt about that, and a lot of the left-wing media won’t have much to say about this, because it’s an allegation against a Labor minister,” he said.

“If it was a Liberal minister, or if it was in that Morrison government period, they’d be trying to knock the front door in to get a comment.”