Over the past 14 months, Wyndham council has lurched from one drama to another.
It tried to keep secret the controversial departure of two senior directors and hired a private investigator to spy on staff, sacking five workers based on his word.
The council has conducted up to nine investigations into its staff in the past three years. It was also revealed as the only Victorian council to access residents’ personal phone and email records, and lost its longest-serving councillor only three weeks ago.
Now, it has been revealed that the council spent almost $355,000 hiring the private eye and fighting unfair dismissal claims at the Fair Work Commission – a fight it has lost.
In her ruling, commissioner Anna Cribb criticised the council and chief executive Kerry Thompson for accepting the private eye’s report “as if it was gospel” and not conducting a separate investigation.
The Australian Services Union’s call for Ms Thompson to be sacked comes as little surprise.
Over the past year, sources have told the Weekly that investigations into staff have become common since Ms Thompson became chief executive in July 2010.
The Weekly has also received reports of councillors being instructed not to talk to the media and to be careful which causes they advocate.
Many residents have begun questioning the council’s decisions and are growing increasingly frustrated at the lack of answers offered by management.
A third of residents recently surveyed by the council told it to improve its performance.
As chief executive, Ms Thompson must take responsibility for the dramas that have engulfed the council.
The people of Wyndham deserve a council they can be proud of. The actions of staff and the council under Ms Thompson’s watch make this impossible.
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