A FORMER Lake Macquarie teacher has accused the Department of Education and Communities of psychological, emotional and financial abuse and called for an independent investigation into how it manages workplace injuries.
Rebecca Roberts* is on medication and undergoes monthly therapy following a breakdown late last year, after 18 months fighting for compensation for a workplace-related psychological injury.
The mother of two said the process left her with $45 in her bank account, referred to the Salvation Army for food vouchers and feeling she had no choice but to medically retire and forgo at least $1 million in expected earnings.
“I’ve suffered a loss of purpose, my career, financial security, 10 years of permanent income, long-service leave and superannuation payments,” Ms Roberts said.
“It’s a loss for me and for my family that will impact on me for the rest of my life.
“This isn’t a one-off, I’m not the only person who has gone through this and it’s not just at my school.”
Ms Roberts joined the school in 2011 and made many unofficial and unanswered complaints over the next two years about what she described as its “destructive” culture.
Her allegations included undermining of work; threatening language and behaviour; victimisation after being a support person for other colleagues; as well as intimidation over the reporting of bullying.
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Ms Roberts made her first official complaint to the DEC in January 2013. She lodged a claim for compensation for a work-related psychological injury and went on indefinite sick and then long service leave, hoping to some day return.
But Ms Roberts said the principal dismissed her complaint and the DEC treated it in isolation, without considering other complaints and without seeking evidence from those who could support her complaint.
Allianz denied her claim for compensation.
Ms Roberts’ doctor, psychologist and psychiatrist told the DEC in May 2013 that work was important for her wellbeing.
Ms Roberts was also paying for medical expenses that would eventually reach $10,000 and needed to support her family.
The DEC gave Ms Roberts permission on May 21 to work for a secondary employer and then withdrew it on September 23.
“It was absolutely essential to my mental health that I had something purposeful to do [marking] that I was good at,” she said.
“I was just sitting in my house with no one else, with no human interaction, because I was past that point in my mental health.”
Ms Roberts was given backdated approval on November 15 to work from July 15 to December 20, 2013, but had already had to decline an offer of employment for that period.
She was given further approval to work from February 4 to April 18, 2014, but her request on May 22 for an extension was denied.
When she engaged a solicitor, the department agreed to arbitration. Her lawyers advised her to take an out-of-court settlement to prevent further anguish.
It comprised workers’ compensation valued at about $30,000 for December 2012 to May 2013 when she had made her temporary move into secondary work, and medical expenses worth up to $10,000 for one year from May 2013. But, Ms Roberts said, the DEC never accepted liability for her injury.
She pleaded again to work either within or outside the department, but was offered no return to work options or rehabilitation.
The DEC injury management adviser told her in July 2014 that her only option was medical retirement.
“It was a relief to get away from the DEC but it was that sense of hopelessness,” she said. “I had fought so hard for the truth, I hadn’t got any justice and the only person who had faced any consequences for what had happened was me.”
The first partial payment of workers’ compensation arrived on September 11, 2014, and her medical retirement was approved on September 25. She was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress within a fortnight and spent a month in hospital.
“There is no external body which ensures accountability for the safety and welfare of employees within the DEC,” Ms Roberts said.
A DEC spokesman said it was “inappropriate” to detail an individual’s circumstances under privacy legislation. “The individual’s matter was managed in line with relevant departmental policy and procedures,” the spokesman said.
* Not her real name.
source:theherald.com.au
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