By Natalie Akoorie of RNZ
The former deputy principal of St Peter’s School Cambridge has been cleared of allegations of bullying and harassment.
However, the outcome is three years too late for Yevette Williams, who said the allegations and subsequent year-long investigation into the alleged conduct destroyed her teaching career.
She sued the prestigious private school’s trust board for the length of time the investigation took to complete. The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) has now found the board should have done more to get it finished sooner.
Without an outcome, Williams was unable to secure another job, and while a draft finding would later show her conduct did not constitute bullying and the Teaching Council took no further action, she was not allowed to show it to prospective employers.
Williams said she was at the pinnacle of her career when in early 2021 WorkSafe received an anonymous complaint of bullying behaviour at the Waikato school, where she was one of six deputies and her husband Dale Burden was executive principal.
Burden and Williams were suspended on full pay as WorkSafe investigated but the reason for their absence was unexplained.
The board launched an investigation and in April that year, former Chief Employment Court Judge Graeme Colgan was hired for the job.
After Burden resigned in May, Colgan’s investigation expanded to include allegations against Williams.
Colgan’s report on Williams was initially expected in June 2021, but ERA member Nicola Craig said in her recent determination the timeframe was unrealistic.
By August 2, following mediation and still without the report, the parties agreed a confidential settlement and Williams resigned, with the board telling the school community she was leaving to undertake a PhD in education leadership.
It was another nine months before Williams would get the final report and only then after her lawyer Erin Burke filed in the authority for compliance.
Craig noted Colgan had health and capacity issues – he was doing tribunal work for the United Nations – and was also affected by a Covid-19 lockdown, however, it was not for the authority to determine whether his actions were reasonable, but to focus on the board’s actions.
For its part, the board considered taking legal action against Colgan and withholding payment as leverage.
Chair John Macaskill-Smith said the delays were not deliberate but admitted the report was no longer the board’s priority after Williams resigned.
The board argued Williams waived any entitlement by not raising the issue for several months over Christmas, but Craig said there were at least six requests for updates on Williams’ behalf and Williams said she did not want to pressure Colgan in case it was perceived as harassment, particularly given the complaint.
The board also said Williams contributed to the delay by supplying substantial information to Colgan, but Craig said it was an important matter to Williams for her reputation and future career.
The report was delivered on May 1, 2022, 13 months after Colgan was hired and two weeks after Burke filed proceedings. It said while Williams had a management style, it did not constitute bullying or harassment.
Craig upheld one of three breaches claimed against the school, saying the settlement agreement contained an implied term that the board would take reasonable steps to ensure completion of the investigation and report, and while it attempted to do so it “should have done more”, including that it could have formally written to Colgan, sought a meeting and proposed deadlines.
Craig said Williams’ breach of the settlement by telling Colgan she needed the report to show prospective employers was only technical.
She did not order penalties against the board and costs were reserved.
Williams said the determination finally cleared her name, but not before her life was shattered.
“To have your life’s work, your passion, and your career ripped away from you is humiliating, soul-destroying and truly heartbreaking.
“Imagine losing everything you’ve ever worked for and more. You fall into a pit of despair, one that is incredibly difficult to navigate and climb out of.”
She hoped the determination would pave the way for her to work again.
- RNZ