Kathy Jackson ordered to pay HSU extra $1million

Disgraced former union official Kathy Jackson had been already been ordered to pay her former employer $1.4 million.

Kathy Jackson, pictured at the Federal court in Sydney, earlier this year.

Disgraced former union official Kathy Jackson has been ordered to pay the Health Services Union almost $1 million, on top of the $1.4 million she already owed her former employer.

The Federal Court today issued the undischarged bankrupt with a bill for $997,349 in interest and court costs she incurred while battling civil proceedings instigated by the union to recoup up to $2.5 million misappropriated from members while she was HSU national secretary between 2008 and February this year.

The court last week dismissed her appeal against Justice Richard Tracey’s August order that she pay the union $1.4 million as compensation for using union-issued credit­ cards and cash withdrawals from union accounts to pay for travel, expensive art, food, alcoho­l, entertainment, shopping sprees, overseas holidays, mortgage payments and her divorce.

HSU national secretary Chris Brown welcomed the costs and interest order, saying it represented the end of a long road in the union’s proceedings against Ms Jackson.

“It’s not exactly what we sought, but it’s so close that it doesn’t matter,” he said.

“We’re pleased with the judgment.”

He said the union was unlikely to see much of the money it was owed, due to Ms Jackson’s status as an undischarged bankrupt, but he was confident part of the sum could be recovered.

“This is the last decision that we’re waiting on out of any of the proceedings involving Jackson, so it’s over with her as far as we’re concerned,” he said.

“I still think I’ll keep waking up not believing it’s over.”

“She has gone to a lot of trouble to try to frustrate this process and that just pushed the costs up.”

Ms Jackson may still face criminal charges, with Victoria Police Taskforce Heracles conducting an independent criminal investigation into more than $900,000 spent during her time at the union.

Ms Jackson declared bankruptcy in June, on the opening day of the Federal Court proceedings.

She was not represented and has not appeared at any recent hearings, having claimed that she was too sick to travel from her home on the NSW coast south of Sydney.

Ms Jackson did not return calls yesterday.

The case of Ms Jackson, who was once hailed for exposing union corruption, is expected to feature prominently in the findings of the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption, with commissioner Dyson Heydon due to repor­t before the end of the year.