Story Archive

I’m Telling!

Rachael Roberts, a real estate agent in Launceston, Tas., Australia, wasn’t getting along with her boss, James Bird, the agency’s principal, or his wife, Lisa Bird, the sales administrator. Roberts complained to the Fair Work Commission, alleging that her listings weren’t featured as much in the front window of the company’s storefront as other agents’. Lisa Bird rolled her eyes at the official complaint, likening it in a staff meeting to a “naughty little school girl running to the teacher.” After the meeting, Roberts found Mrs. Bird had “unfriended” her on Facebook, so Roberts complained about that to the Commission too. The Commission ruled that unfriending Roberts on social media indicated a “lack of emotional maturity” and was “indicative of unreasonable behaviour” — workplace bullying. That was backed up by calling her a “school girl,” which was “provocative and disobliging,” the Commission’s tribunal ruled. The Commission has the power to require anti-bullying measures to be put into place, but it doesn’t have the power to order fines or compensation. (RC/Sydney Morning Herald) ...Which indicates that Aussie politicians might be much wiser than previously thought.