ALBANY’S new Deputy Mayor Dennis Wellington has called for a Ministerial inquiry into the threatening behaviour by councillors towards City staff.
Cr Wellington said he was concerned by “the inappropriate, recalcitrant and threatening behaviour by some elected members towards staff”.
“I am very concerned about the actions of a couple of councillors and the ongoing drama it represents in the City’s workplace,” Cr Wellington said.
“We have a requirement to provide a safe working environment for staff.”
Cr Wellington will put a formal motion at next week’s Council meeting.
Cr Wellington said he was only bringing out into the open a problem that had been eating away at the City’s working environment for several years.
“What I am saying is that the harassment of individual staff members has been going on for some time,” he said.
“They should not have to put up with it, and neither should councillors or ratepayers.
“We need to be upfront about everything that happens in the City.”
Cr Wellington said it was important to sort out the situation so staff and councillors could get on with their jobs.
He said staff were being constantly distracted.
Cr Wellington said failure to intervene with an inquiry would have a significant impact on the health of staff and leave the City exposed to significant liability under Occupational Health and Safety legislation.
Cr Wellington’s call was backed by Mayor Milton Evans’ motion that Council support staff by implementing an administrative directive.
Mr Evans wants councillors to stop “harassing” staff members, including CEO Paul Richards, by contacting them on the day of monthly Council meetings.
He wants a deadline of 5pm on the Monday prior the meetings to eliminate contact between councillors and staff.
He said it would allow staff time to prepare for the meetings.
Mr Evans was scathing of the attitudes of some councillors when he spoke about the foreshadowed motion in October.
Cr Roland Paver moved for information from the CEO and staff be provided within a reasonable time.
Cr Wellington said it was imperative all councillors pulled their weight by putting their names forward for committees.
However, at Tuesday night’s briefing meeting, Crs Roland Paver and Jill and David Bostock said they did not wish to be on any committee, apart from one conducting the CEO’s annual review.
All three failed to win a seat on the committee.
As a result, the Vancouver Ward is not represented on any committee.
Albany Chamber of Commerce CEO Graham Harvey slammed the trio for their stance.
“These people have the audacity to preach to others about the responsibilies of democracy,” he said.
“If they had one ounce of integrity, all three would resign, and then the constituents of Vancouver and Breaksea could have people prepared to properly represent their interests.
“This obstructionist behaviour is what has paralysed the city for the past two years. Thankfully, there are some new faces on Council, so Albany can move forward.”
Next week’s full Council meeting promises to be a lively affair with several other controversial motions.
Cr David Bostock has moved to stop Council or staff considering any more planning scheme amendments.
He said Albany was not in need of future development as enough land was available and there was an over-supply. Cr Jill Bostock wants councillors to have open access to legal advice from the City’s solicitors.
Email a friend
Favourites
Del.icio.us
Facebook
Digg
StumbleUpon
MySpace
Reddit
Newsvine
LinkedIn
Kwoff
Twitter