Super Retail pair’s alleged affair was known to CEO’s wife, whistleblower court case hears
Super Retail chief Anthony Heraghty was seen touching HR boss Jane Kelly on the thigh at a work event, the pair were spotted checking into a Brisbane hotel and his assistant quit after his wife found phone messages confirming the affair, court documents show.
Suspicions of a clandestine personal relationship between Super Retail Group chief executive Anthony Heraghty and human resources boss Jane Kelly allegedly arose five years ago, according to new court documents that claim his wife was aware of the disputed affair.
Former chief legal officer Rebecca Farrell and former company secretary Amelia Berczelly were sacked by Super Retail last year after alleging the illicit relationship was creating a toxic work environment.
They are taking to court under the Fair Work Act the retail giant which operates Rebel, Supercheap Auto, Macpac and BCF. In updated court filings, it is alleged Ms Berczelly observed Mr Heraghty and Ms Kelly enter the lobby of Brisbane hotel The Calile together in June 2023.
“Heraghty and Kelly had acted in a manner that was very suspicious and suggestive that they were engaged in an intimate or personal relationship that had not been disclosed to the board,” the court filings alleged.
“Heraghty and Kelly had both behaved in an awkward and suspicious manner when they realised they had been seen by Berczelly.”
It is alleged that Ms Berczelly texted Ms Farrell about her observation.
As well, during a leadership offsite in August 2022 in the NSW suburb of Manly, a staff member allegedly witnessed a moment of physical intimacy between the pair.
“(A staff member) had observed Heraghty resting his hand on Kelly’s thigh while the (executive leadership team) were drinking at a bar,” the court documents alleged. That staff member was Paul Bradshaw, the managing director of BCF.
A number of staff complained about this on August 15, 2023 during a teams meeting, it is claimed.
As well, Ms Farrell’s court filings allege Mr Heraghty’s former executive assistant was told by Mr Heraghty’s wife that she knew about the alleged affair and that it had been ongoing for about three years since 2020.
“Heraghty’s wife had accessed Heraghty’s mobile phone device in around March 2023 and discovered that Heraghty had been having an affair with Kelly for around three years prior to that date,” the court documents claim.
The executive assistant quit as a result of discovering the affair, it was alleged.
“On becoming aware of the affair, (the former executive assistant) had observed, and recalled, various unusual transactions, including transactions relating to business travel and hotels, that were indicative of the relationship,” according to the court documents.
On November 22, 2023, it is alleged a whistleblower alerted Ms Farrell that “they believed that the existence of the relationship explained why Kelly had been able to ‘get away with’ mistreating and bullying, team members without consequence”.
According to allegations contained in Ms Berczelly’s court filings, Mr Heraghty threatened her and Ms Farrell during a mediation on April 17, 2024, saying words to the effect that “whistleblowers never fare well”.
“The applicant (Ms Berczelly) and (Ms) Farrell had been misled by SUL (Super Retail Group) and its advisers at the mediation (and before that, including by Hamilton Locke) in relation to the existence of an intimate relationship between Heraghty and Kelly and the board’s knowledge of it,” according to court filings.
A spokesman for Super Retail Group referred The Australian to an ASX announcement published last April, in which it pre-empted the legal claim and denied all of the allegations.
“The board has conducted a review and investigations into these allegations. The board was supported by independent external advisers. The board’s review and investigations concluded that none of the allegations are substantiated,” that statement read.
“Super Retail Group will defend any court proceedings in relation to the allegations. Allens is acting for the group.”
Super Retail recently won a court fight to keep secret the details about an alleged settlement offer made to Ms Farrell and Ms Berczelly.
Ms Berczelly and Ms Farrell were not publicly identified as the whistleblowers who reported the alleged affair between Mr Heraghty and Ms Kelly when the initial company statement was made to the ASX. At that stage, the company said the pair could be claiming loss and damages between $30m and $50m.
Mediation talks fell through, and the whistleblowers rejected initial settlement offers.
Super Retail, formerly chaired by Sally Pitkin, conducted a full investigation into the allegations including claims about the undisclosed affair, inappropriate company travel, bullying, victimisation, restrictive access to information, poor record keeping and excessive workloads, and found no evidence to support such accusations.
Ms Pitkin resigned from the board last October.
Ms Kelly left the company in late 2023.
Originally published as Super Retail pair’s alleged affair was known to CEO’s wife, whistleblower court case hears
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