Majority of FSU executive opposed to Jordan

Internal strains at the Finance Sector Union arising from the boilover victory of challenger Fiona Jordan in last year's election for national secretary are spilling into the public domain through a ruling of the Fair Work Commission.

Greg McConville, a senior FSU industrial officer, raised allegations of bullying in connection with Geoff Derrick, the union's national assistant secretary.

In February, McConville made his complaint to the national secretary, Jordan, who took steps to appoint an independent external investigator to consider and report on the complaint.

The national executive of the union intervened and determined that the investigation should be conducted by a three person subcommittee of the national executive and also required Jordan, and then later McConville, to provide the executive with a copy of the complaint with the names of the parties redacted.

McConville took the matter to the FWC on the grounds that it was inappropriate for a sub-committee of the executive to conduct the investigation and that the process proposed by the executive undermined his confidentiality and privacy and may threaten his future employment.

The Fair Work Commissioner, Julius Roe, in ruling last week, aired observations on the tensions within the FSU executive.

"The evidence is sufficient for me to conclude that the members of the national executive including Derrick were generally part of the campaign team which was opposed to the election of the current national secretary and that they generally remain opposed to the national secretary.

"The resolutions of the national executive which prevent the national secretary from obtaining legal advice or from dealing with internal staff matters including complaints about bullying are clear examples of this.

"They are decisions which are out of the ordinary in the management of a union and are clearly reflective of a continuing sharp difference between the majority of the national executive and the national secretary … the previous national secretary was not subject to such restrictions."

However, Roe concluded: "I am not satisfied on the basis of the evidence before me that Derrick is the leader of the group or that I could conclude that Derrick is able to or does direct the votes, actions or views of other members of the national executive."

In a decision that effectively upholds the management choices of the majority of the union's executive, Roe decided: "I cannot make a finding of apprehended bias against any member of the national executive. There is insufficient basis to conclude that there is no member of the national executive who is capable of being impartial in investigating the complaint.

"Having made this finding, I cannot require the appointment of an external investigator.

"There is also insufficient basis to conclude that all the members of the national executive selected [to assess the bullying complaint] would be incapable of being impartial."