Services Union blasts Gympie council for ‘shonky’ investigations

The Gympie council is under fire from the Services Union which claims it is “manipulating” investigations and creating a culture that’s likely led to several senior resignations.

New Gympie council CEO Shane Gray

The Services Union has slammed what it says are “shonky” investigation practices which are obliterating staff morale at Gympie Regional Council.

In the publicly released statement to its members, the union accused the council of engaging in practices lacking fairness or even the “necessary substance” to justify them in the first place.

It also claimed the “mental and physical toll” of these hunts was likely the reason some staff had resigned.

Gympie council CEO Shane Gray disputed the claims, saying investigations were carried out with integrity the council had a duty for its staff to act with highest integrity.

“It’s not appropriate for Council to discuss or comment on any investigations as we need to respect the privacy of our staff, however we do understand that investigations can be confronting and can cause stress and anxiety, which is not our intention,” Mr Gray said.

“However as a community organisation funded by residents, we have a responsibility to ensure that staff represent and act with the highest rate of integrity and accountability.

“Unfortunately, due to the nature of some investigations, this can take time especially when external agencies are involved.”

The Services Union said a staff survey at the organisation revealed a quarter of respondents had been investigated by the council. Photo The Gympie Times

In July, the same union flagged concerns over an increasing number of internal investigations at the council.

Organiser Tom Rivers said the union was “alarmed by some of the shonky investigation practices that have been occurring at the council and it is clearly having an impact on staff morale”.

In response to Mr Rivers’s comment, Mr Gray said staff had access to support services.

“For all employees involved in investigations, including witnesses, council offers our employees a free confidential counselling service... to support them, which is formally provided to each person in writing,” Mr Gray said.

The Union said survey results highlight the depth of how the investigations have affected council staff.

A quarter of respondents said they had been investigated, one third said they had needed to give evidence as a witness in an investigation and three quarters of these respondents said they were uncomfortable with the line of questioning during the interviews.

Ninety-seven per cent of respondents said the current level of investigations impacted negatively on staff morale.

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Staff comments from the survey released by the union accused the council of “manipulating” investigations to “create a specific outcome”

Another said mental health had suffered since the new CEO and “his team” had started.

A third member said they had been with the council for a “significant time” and “the current culture is the worst I have seen”.

The union said polling revealed a “strong belief” the council’s strategy was “designed to force people to leave and avoid paying redundancies”.

Tourism Development Manager Andrew Saunders was one of a number of high profile staff members to resign in the wake of the March 2020 election.

Mr Rivers said the survey had been sent to 240 of the council’s staff, with one quarter taking up the offer.

“This gives us a strong indication of staff sentiment and we feel comfortable drawing some conclusions from this,” Mr Rivers said.

A number of high ranking staff have left the council since the March 2020 election.

Originally published as Services Union blasts Gympie council for ‘shonky’ investigations