And Pact Group was ordered by the Employment Court to pay Roseanne Sheridan $30,000 in compensation, overturning an earlier decision by the Employment Relations Authority ruling in Pact Group’s favour.
The court also found Pact Group’s handling of Ms Sheridan’s case left the community support worker feeling ‘‘isolated’’ and ‘‘marginalised’’.
‘‘I wanted this to never happen to somebody else,’’ Ms Sheridan said following her successful appeal.
‘‘It means so much to me to actually have that truth and justice and to have them held to account.’’
In January 2021, Ms Sheridan was working alone at a care facility, when a resident allegedly threatened to slit
her throat.
Ms Sheridan was diagnosed with PTSD following the incident but later received a letter which ‘‘blindsided’’ her, advising her Pact Group was proposing terminating her employment for medical incapacity, according to the recent ruling from Chief Judge Christina Inglis.
‘‘Rather than actively pursuing a rehabilitation process, as it was required to do under its own policy, Pact Group started putting pressure on Ms Sheridan from a relatively early stage, foreshadowing that dismissal was on the cards,’’ the ruling read.
‘‘This clearly caused Ms Sheridan to suffer stress and anxiety as she sought to navigate her way through a very difficult situation that her employer was not making any easier. She felt isolated and marginalised and became increasingly concerned about her financial situation.’’
Responding to the ruling, Pact Group chief executive Paul Chamberlain said Pact was ‘‘disappointed’’ with the outcome.
Ms Sheridan said the ruling was about more than money.
‘‘It wasn’t just a matter of the money. It was the matter of them being held to account and it was about clearing my good name and my professional reputation which they had sullied.’’
The letter she received from Pact Group ‘‘completely retraumatised’’ her to the point she could no longer work.
‘‘They were trying to make out that I was in some way complicit for my own situation.
‘‘I was actually a quivering mess the next day,’’ Ms Sheridan said.
She filed a personal grievance last year for unjustifiable dismissal, in which the Employment Relations Authority ruled Pact Group was justified in its decision.
The registered nurse worried the case was dead in the water before being thrown a lifeline by Simon Mitchell KC.
‘‘When the union decided they were not going to take the case to appeal, they asked him for his opinion.
‘‘He rang up and told me and I thought ‘well, that’s that’ and then he said something that just about blew me away. He said ‘but I would like to take your case pro bono’.
‘‘If he had not done that, then the rest would not have happened and I am very grateful for his generosity and his compassion and his sense of truth and justice.’’
Commenting on the chief judge’s ruling, Ms Sheridan said ‘‘her ruling that said that none of this was in any way my fault, that really meant so very much to me’’.
The five-year ordeal had ‘‘taken a big toll’’ on her, and along with working through her PTSD, she had also suffered from stress-related health issues, Ms Sheridan said.
‘‘It’s been five years of waiting and five years of going through it.
‘‘For a long time I felt like I couldn’t tell people I didn’t work any more. I felt ashamed that I had been dismissed on medical grounds.
‘‘It has been a very, very long five years and I’ve found God has been my strength.’’
She was relieved it was over now and she could continue with her life.
Mr Chamberlain commented: ‘‘It [the ruling] was a complete reversal of an earlier decision by the Employment Authority, which we were surprised at.
‘‘From our perspective, we of course have to balance out the needs of Roseanne, the remaining staff and our client group in Oamaru, where we have a very limited number of staff on the ground.
‘‘Obviously, we are disappointed with the outcome.’’
