Woman sacked from TV station for posting emails on social media site

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A woman who was sacked from a Chinese television station after posting "angry and abusive" emails on a social media site has been awarded more than $15,000 for unjustified dismissal.

Dandi Wang, a marketing manager at New Zealand Chinese Television Ltd (NZCTV), also known as TV33, was fired in March 2014 during a period of sick leave following an incident at the channel's premises, which is now the subject of criminal proceedings.

In a dismissal letter, her boss Stephen Wong accused her of failing to return company property and said a lack of a return date to work inferred she was "not capable of performing your tasks".

Ms Wang said she was unjustifiably sacked, and took her case to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA).

It followed a breakdown in their working relationship after a January 13, 2014 incident at the NZCTV building, the details of which were suppressed in the ERA judgement.

Ms Wang was one of four directors of the channel, until days after the January incident, when the other three directors - Mr Wong, Lucy Hong Yuan and Jian Ting Zheng - concluded she was "unfit" to hold the position following a series of social media posts.

Ms Wang had taken several days off work following the incident, during which time she published a number of emails on social media site, WeChat, where NZCTV employees had a closed chat group. They included messages between herself, Mr Wong and a person with name suppression, referred to in the ERA report as A.

The emails were "emotional and angry in nature, and some were abusive", the ERA said.

All employees could see them, and Ms Wang also confirmed she had forwarded the emails to NZCTV customers.

She told the ERA she was "stressed and feeling very angry" at the time, as a result of the January 13 incident, and acknowledged it had been inappropriate.

In response, Mr Wong posted emails sent to A and Ms Wang on the WeChat website, saying he felt he had to "present a balanced picture of what had occurred".

Before Ms Wang was due back to the office on January 20, the other directors held a meeting and decided to remove her as a director, admitting they were influenced by her email posts.

Ms Wang said when she returned to work she was "made to feel unwelcome in the workplace", and that Mr Wong did not talk to her. He told the ERA he felt embarrassed and uncomfortable following the WeChat messages.

A day later, Mr Wong sent a letter to Ms Wang asking for a meeting to discuss "the breakdown of our relationship .... [and] the possibility that you should be dismissed".

Ms Wang went back on sick leave, and began communications with the company via lawyers who said her mental state was fragile.

In March, Mr Wong sent a letter accusing her of holding onto company property, including a car, iPhone and money, and of not being fit to return to work. He then sent another letter sacking her.

The ERA said it was "clear from the evidence of Mr Wong, Ms Yuan and Mr Zheng ...[they] regarded her as 'blameworthy' in the incident which had taken place at the NZCTV offices between her and A on 13 January 2014 and a source of 'trouble"'.

It said that a fair and reasonable employer would have given Ms Wang the opportunity to respond to the allegations, and ruled she was unjustifiably dismissed.

NZCTV was ordered to pay her more than $10,000 in lost wages and holiday pay, as well as $8000 in compensation. However, the amount was reduced by 20 per cent for Ms Wang's "contributory fault" in posting the angry emails.