A youth programme co-ordinator who allegedly told a teenage student to "f*** off" and threatened to throw him overboard during a fishing trip has been compensated for wrongful dismissal.
The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) has found the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic was wrong to reach some of its conclusions about the actions of Youth Guarantee programme co-ordinator Kelly Pakaru.
That made his dismissal unjustified, and the polytech was ordered to pay compensation.
Mr Pakaru was dismissed in September last year following complaints about his language and conduct towards students.
His role involved spending most of his time with students, aged 16 and 17, in a mentoring role. Many activities were marae-based or took place outside of classrooms.