The dismissal of a security guard who knocked sandwiches out of a prisoner's hands and then challenged him to a one-on-one fight was justified, the Employment Relations Authority has ruled.
Francis Schriiffer was employed by First Security in February 2010 to provide security services to Northland courts and to other clients.
On December 16, 2010, First Security officers were loading prisoners from a holding cell on to a truck to return them to Ngawha Prison after their appearances at Kaikohe District Court. An exchange involving a prisoner, his sandwiches and Mr Schriiffer then took place, the authority said in a decision just released.
The prisoner had a sandwich that had been given to him by First Security but Schriiffer told him he could not take it into the prison. There was "an exchange of views" which caused the prisoner to be "separated from his sandwich" which ended up on the floor.
Mr Schriiffer told the authority he had had to ask the prisoner to hand over the sandwiches two or three times.
Eventually he took the sandwiches by effectively knocking them out of the prisoner's hands, he said.
With the assistance of two other officers, the prisoner was then restrained.
Other officers of First Security said Mr Schriiffer had challenged the prisoner to go "one-on-one" in a fight.
Earlier that day, the prisoner had made abusive comments to someone in the public gallery during a court appearance. Mr Schriiffer had told him to stop and he did.
Then, the prisoner began shouting abuse again.
The presiding judge asked Mr Schriiffer if he was having difficulties with the prisoner and then, on the way out, the prisoner continued to yell abuse to someone in the gallery.
A First Security manager wrote to Mr Schriiffer four days later telling him there would be an investigation into allegations of serious misconduct.
Mr Schriiffer was accused of using inflammatory language, inappropriate use of force in removing the prisoner's sandwich and offering to go one-on-one.
He was later dismissed and took a claim of unjustified dismissal to the ERA.
The ERA said its ruling was underpinned by First Security's conviction that Mr Schriiffer was not compelled to use force and that he completely mismanaged the incident to such an extent as to undermine the trust and confidence that the employer needed to have in him.