By EUGENE BINGHAM
The Immigration Service has made a confidential payout to a staff member over a parliamentary outburst by Immigration Minister Lianne Dalziel.
And taxpayers are likely to have to dig even deeper next week when a second Auckland-based immigration officer is due to settle her personal grievance case over the same incident.
The two took legal action against against the service last year, claiming they were unfairly treated when Ms Dalziel told Parliament she had been misled by her officials and that they had "let the country down."
The Weekend Herald learned that the first case has been settled, although last night the size of the payout remained a secret.
Both parties have signed a confidentiality clause, and Ms Dalziel has refused to comment.
The Opposition last night called for Ms Dalziel to be sacked.
"This is unprecedented behaviour by a minister and demonstrates her lack of fitness to oversee a Government department," said immigration spokeswoman Marie Hasler.
"She should be dismissed."
Ms Hasler said it was an outrage that Ms Dalziel would not make public details of the settlement, or say whether she had admitted culpability.
Ms Dalziel launched her tirade against her officials over the mistaken deportation of a Philippines family last October.
The Milla family were taken from their home and put on a plane out of the country before officials realised their appeal to stay had not been dealt with. The next day, Ms Dalziel said in a radio interview that the family had not been raided at dawn, though she later told Parliament she had been misled.
She said of her officials: "They have let this House down. They have let the country down.
"I am not prepared to stand up and justify it when my own officials have not even told me the truth."
An investigation by the State Services Commissioner has since established that there was no intention to mislead the minister.
The two officers, a man and a woman, are understood to have taken action against the service, saying they had been disadvantaged by unjustified harassment.
Lawyer Ray Parmenter, who represented the man, said his client's case was settled in mediation but he could not comment about the terms - "There's a confidentiality clause, I'm afraid."
The service's chief operating officer, Debbie Camp, refused to comment, saying: "All matters relating to personal grievances are confidential ... to be resolved between department and employee."
The Herald has appealed to the Ombudsman's Office to intervene on the grounds of public interest.
A spokeswoman for Ms Dalziel said she would not comment because it was an operational matter.
Recent personal grievance cases involving unjustified disadvantage have resulted in compensation of up to $2000 for humiliation, plus costs, says the Employment Institutions Information Centre.
The officers' claims were legally complicated by the fact that Ms Dalziel was not their employer.
The Employment Relations Act allows a person to take action only against their employer.
But it is understood that they argued they had been disadvantaged as a result of the statements.
Double payout for Dalziel's immigration outburst
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.