An independent report has been released detailing 33 failings by FENZ over the way it handled a volunteer firefighters initial complaint, and several after that. File picture. Photo: RNZ / Richard Tindiller
Fire and Emergency New Zealand has apologised unreservedly to a former volunteer firefighter for failing to properly investigate a series of complaints.
It has been nearly 10 years since Sarah Hullah made her first complaint to FENZ about sexual harassment.
Now, an 111-page independent report by Simon Mount KC, released on Wednesday, details 33 failings by FENZ over the way it handled her initial complaint, and several after that.
The exact nature of the original complaint is redacted, but the report repeatedly references a culture of bullying and harassment.
It finds that FENZ treated Hullah as a risk to be managed, rather than a person with legitimate concerns.
FENZ chief executive and national commander Kerry Gregory said he apologised "publicly and unreservedly to Ms Hullah for the failure to properly investigate".
He said FENZ had accepted all 33 findings, and separately, reached a resolution with Hullah.
The organisation continued to work on a programme to change its culture, "to create a safer, more positive, and inclusive environment for all our people. We are striving to become a different organisation".
Already, significant changes had been made to how complaints were managed, including introducing an independent service that specialises in conflict resolution and complaint management.
"Bullying, harassment, and victimisation have no place in Fire and Emergency, and we take all allegations of any such behaviour very seriously. I am committed to creating an environment where everyone feels safe, and that any complaints are handled appropriately," he said.
"I am confident that if complaints like those addressed in the review occurred today, they would be handled through a more robust and transparent process."
But Hullah said: "I never wanted an apology, I wanted change, and change requires accountability."
She said she had been overwhelmed by the number of people who contacted her on Wednesday who wanted to reopen their complaints - she said they were confident that if their cases were heard independently, they might achieve the same outcome.
She said it was difficult for her to talk about the details of her original complaint, as she risked breaching a non-publication order, but from the beginning she felt FENZ was backing the person she complained about. "I was fought every step of the way."
People who were implicated in the report were still working within FENZ, she said.
The report also found fault with the interim dispute resolution process. Namely, that the investigator did not comply with the agreed process to give the complainant opportunity to comment on interviews before preparing draft findings; did not adequately deal with pre-interview contact between interviewees; wrongly suggested that corroboration of the complainant's account was required; and reached conclusions that were unsustainable on the evidence.
That investigator's name has been redacted by the Public Service Commission. "I believe the public has a right to know about those actions, because they're still doing similar work today."
After that process, the report found FENZ took an overly rigid approach to defining the scope of the complaints, made an unreasonable decision not to proceed with the external investigation, did not respond to the complainant's reasonable questions, delayed the process and did not manage conflicts of interest.
"I'd lost all faith at that point," Hullah said.
She said the only way things would change was if workers could see what the organisation's values really were. "Not values documents or conduct documents, but to show, if somebody senior does something wrong, they will lose their job, just as someone lower down would do."
What did she want to happen now?
"I'm not special, my case isn't special. I want to know that anyone at FENZ can get a fair and independent process without having to put their life on hold for nine years, and lobby the Public Service Commission and DIA [Department of Internal Affairs] to give it to them."
That fair and independent process had been recommended in 2022.
She also wanted to see those people whose names had been redacted in the report to be held accountable.
No indication FENZ employees will lose jobs over findings, Kerry Gregory says
"The processes weren't in place at the right time, they failed - they failed Sarah and they failed the organisation," Gregory said.
He said training for managing difficult conversations had been rolled out to more than 800 staff, and leadership panels must undergo training about unconscious biases.
"The apology is really just recognising for Sarah, the weight of impact that it's had on her over a period of time."
He would not be drawn on whether people found at fault, whose names had been redacted from the report, had been moved out of their positions within FENZ.
"The people involved haven't been given the tools to do it well, and the process didn't support them to do that well, so anyone who was involved through the 10-year period who may or may not still be in the organisation, wasn't necessarily well supported by the organisation as a whole."
He said he did not think there needed to be a fully independent system for complaints - he was confident in the changes they had underway.
Would he be open to revisiting the original complaint under the new system? "I would have to have a look at that from a basis of natural justice, and what aspects have been let down through that report."
Was he prepared for others who might be interested in reopening their complaints? "There's a number of processes open to them in that regard."
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