Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More
Parliament

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | Video | Questions Of the Day | Search

 

Greens Welcome Court Decision In Rankin Case

Green Party Labour spokesperson Sue Bradford today welcomed the Employment Court's decision to dismiss Christine Rankin's claim for reinstatement as a chief executive of Work and Income and $1.2 million compensation for damages and lost salary.

"The Employment Court decision confirmed that Christine Rankin's problem has always been the performance, not her clothes and appearance.

"Mrs Rankin's contract was fixed-term for three years and contained no written expectation of re-appointment. I believe that Governments should be able to hold chief executives fully accountable, and in this position they should only be employed on fixed term contracts," she said

Ms Bradford said that the Hunn Report, carried out last year, had been a far more thorough evaluation than normal. The report was critical of Work and Income's management style and top down decision-making processes.

"Commonsense would suggest that a chief executive subject to such a report would have it used in any assessment by their employer as to whether their contract would be renewed or not," she said.

"Christine Rankin became a very public figure after her appointment as head of Work and Income by a National-led Government. She expressed commitment to the most visible aspects of corporate culture, a culture of extravagance, at a time when beneficiaries were being publicly targeted through a cruel "dob in a bludger" campaign".

"There was a huge contrast between the grievance procedures and dollars available to Christine Rankin to pursue her employment claim and those available to ordinary beneficiaries and students trying to access their full entitlements to benefits, allowances, loans and job-seeking assistance," she said.

Ends


Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines


Gordon Campbell: On The US Opposition To Mortgage Interest Deductibility For Landlords


Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don't think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of political capital by giving landlords a huge $2.9 billion tax break via interest deductibility, while still preaching the need for austerity to the disabled, and to everyone else...
More


 
 

Government: Concerns Conveyed To China Over Cyber Activity
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity... More

ALSO:


Government: GDP Decline Reinforces Government’s Fiscal Plan

Declining GDP for the December quarter reinforces the importance of restoring fiscal discipline to public spending and driving more economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says... More

ALSO:


Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.