MEDIA RELEASE
The Baird Government has been forced to override its own employment contracts and finally reinstate the first female Deputy Commissioner of the State Emergency Services, whistleblower, Tara McCarthy after she was found to have been corruptly sacked said the Public Service Association (PSA).
In May this year, the ICAC found, for the first time under the Protected Information Disclosure Act, that a NSW public servant had been corruptly dismissed.
“This landmark decision by the ICAC should have immediately resulted in the reinstatement of Deputy Commissioner McCarthy,” said PSA General Secretary, Anne Gardiner.
“However, the employment contracts she and other senior NSW public servants are required to sign mean they can be sacked too easily and even if the sacking occurs under corrupt circumstances, reinstatement is almost impossible.”
“If Premier Baird is serious about preventing corruption in NSW then the first thing he should do is have these employment contracts rewritten so that senior public servants have an avenue of appeal if they are dismissed.”
“The Government has purposely worded these contracts so that senior public servants have no right of appeal if they are sacked. This Machiavellian trick is not acceptable if we want transparency in government.”
“This Government talks about wanting a public service which provides frank and fearless advice but these employment contracts are designed to make providing such advice very difficult,” said Ms Gardiner.
Deputy Commissioner McCarthy’s reinstatement was announced today and she commences duty on Monday 27 October 2014.