| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Wellington |
| Reference No | WA 79/04 |
| Hearing date | 19 May 2004 - 20 May 2004 (2 days) |
| Determination date | 22 June 2004 |
| Member | G J Wood |
| Representation | G Jenkins ; S Webster |
| Location | Wellington |
| Parties | Owen v Hawkes Bay District Health Board |
| Summary | UNJUSTIFIED DISMISSAL - Serious misconduct - Poor performance - Summary dismissal - Whether dismissal justified - Applicant recruited from United Kingdom - Required training - Respondent concerned about progress - Applicant developed depression - Respondent received complaints from colleagues about applicant's knowledge, clinical work and team participation - Mediation - Outcome of mediation was training plan to be completed by April - In December applicant swore at trainer telling her that if sacked he would badmouth respondent - Trainer and other staff threatened to resign - Dismissed for breaching house rules against incompetence and causing unreasonable distress to employees - Proven misconduct did not constitute serious misconduct - Not open to respondent to summarily dismiss - Reasonable time to allow for attainment of required standard was until April - Should have issued formal warning - Offensive comments to trainer did not constitute serious misconduct - Underlying cause for dismissal was threat from other staff to leave rather than breaches of policy - Dismissal unjustified - Remedies - Applicant sought $75,000 to repatriate family to United Kingdom - No grounds to grant repatriation costs - Sickness benefit since dismissal - To succeed in claim for lost remuneration depressive illness must have followed some breach of duty by respondent - No breach - Entitled to expect employment would continue until at least April - Compensation for humiliation appropriate - Depression contributed to situation that gave rise to personal grievance - One third contributory conduct- Speech language therapist |
| Result | Application granted ; Compensation for humiliation, etc ($9,000 reduced to $6,000) ; Costs reserved |
| Cases Cited | Attorney-General v Gilbert [2002] 1 ERNZ 31; [2002] 2 NZLR 342;Trotter v Telecom Corp of NZ Ltd [1993] 2 ERNZ 659;Whatuira v Hawkes Bay District Health Board unreported, 13 November 2001, GJ Wood, WA 81/01 |
| Number of Pages | 14 |
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