TAC adviser payout over ‘office dispute’

A mystery payout to a senior adviser comes as staff morale falls at Victoria’s Transport Accident Commission.

TAC chief executive Tracey Slatter. Picture: supplied

A senior adviser to Victoria’s Transport Accident Commission chief executive has received a substantial publicly funded payout after taking legal action against the road safety body.

The Australian can reveal one of TAC chief Tracey Slatter’s most senior advisers launched a case in the Fair Work Commission which listed the matter as an “application to deal with a dispute”.

The emergence of the payout comes in the midst of falling morale within the TAC’s 1200-strong workforce which has been undergoing significant reforms overseen by Ms Slatter during her 18 months in the top job.

The Australian has been told the adviser received a six-figure payout, but the TAC refused to reveal the value of the settlement and did not respond when asked if a nondisclosure agreement was part of the deal.

“Any matters dealt with in conference at the Fair Work Commission are private and confidential to the parties,” a TAC spokesperson said.

“The TAC has had no conduct issues relating to its CEO.”

A TAC source has defended the performance of Ms Slatter saying she was hired with a mandate to reform and modernise the organisation and this was meeting resistance among some long-serving staff.

One point of tension, the source said, was the move to have more staff return to working in the office more days a week, reducing the Covid-policy of working from home.

TAC Logo

The TAC’s 2023-24 annual report, tabled in parliament last month, reveals increasing levels of unhappiness within the Geelong-based organisation in a section headlined “listening to our people”.

“We saw a very strong participation rate of 92% in the 2024 (employee opinion survey),” the report states.

“However, there was a decline in sustainable engagement to 69%, which is 6 points lower than the previous EOS.”

The Australian has been told by another figure familiar with the operations of the TAC that there had been a “mass exodus” of senior executives from the organisation.

“To have a group of highly paid public servants who can work from home so unhappy is an achievement in itself,” the figure said.

“Over the past three months there has been a continued mass exodus of senior TAC executives who are leaving.”

The TAC building in Geelong Picture: Mark Wilson

Asked by The Australian if the TAC board was investigating the declining morale and what they believed was behind the poor result, the TAC conceded inadequate “systems and technology” were impacting on the staff.

“The TAC has a range of forums and channels for employees to provide feedback or raise concerns, including the Employee Opinion Survey,” a spokesperson said.

“Employee experience with systems and technology was the most significant issue identified by our employees in the 2023-24 EOS survey.

“The TAC has responded quickly to this feedback, with the Board approving a program of work to modernise systems and transform business processes to make it easier for our people to support our clients.”

The 2023-24 annual report reveals the TAC recorded a $1bn operating surplus and points to the internal changes overseen by Ms Slatter.

“Strong leadership is critical to the success of any organisation and, following our most significant management restructure in recent years, we are confident we have the right team in place to drive a high-performing culture,” the report states.

The annual report reveals the organisation met 11 of its 18 targets during 2023-24, and admits one of the most “devastating” outcomes was the death of 295 on the state’s roads, the greatest loss of lives on roads since 2008.

Do you know more? Email [e-mail]