A former Wellington ambulance service worker, dismissed after an altercation with a co-worker, might have won her job back but for abusive comments she texted and posted on Facebook, the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) has ruled.
Alana Adams, 22, was employed as an emergency call taker at the Wellington Free Ambulance's (WFA) central emergency communication centre for three years, when in February this year a co-worker, Braden Robinson, formally complained about her treatment of him over him taking a break.
Ms Adams called him a "prick" and a "dick" and that he needed to learn his place and the pair subsequently had a spat on the social networking website Facebook, the ERA said in a decision released today.
WFA investigations revealed similar behaviour in April last year, when a family friend of Ms Adams died after twice refusing an ambulance sent by a worker at another communications centre outside of Wellington.
Ms Adams had sent text messages to the worker, one said "he died you bastard", a second said "f**k u. Ur a dick" and a third "Coz ur a f**khead. And ths is personal. Professional wud b if I emaild u abuse".
The worker felt devastated because it was implied he was responsible for the death.
WFA dismissed Ms Adams following disciplinary meetings without telling her it knew of last year's exchange.
ERA member Greg Wood said Ms Adams should have known about the investigation and she was entitled to respond to the information as it was highly prejudicial.
Therefore, it was not how a fair and reasonable employer should have acted, he said.
Mr Wood ruled that Ms Adams, who was devoted to the career and was training hard for her paramedic qualifications, was unjustifiably dismissed and she had a good case to be reinstated.
He said he would have ordered her reinstatement but for the extra information which came forward.
It was not practical to reinstate her because of her past history and he was not satisfied she would have been a "harmonious and effective staff member".
In many ways her Facebook comments and text messages, which were made some time after the events that triggered them, were more serious because it showed her reactions to work incidents were not left at work, Mr Woods said.
"Ms Adams' behaviour in attacking him on Facebook was unprofessional in the extreme."
She also continued to question the WFA's training coordinator and failed to understand why her Facebook actions were a concern for her employer.
She could have been awarded $10,000 compensation for the loss of her job, but because her contribution to the situation was significant that was reduced to $4000.
WFA chief executive Alan O'Beirne stressed her dismissal was not solely over comments made on Facebook.
He said the ambulance service took advice from the Department of Labour over Ms Adams' dismissal.
"Unfortunately, it seems the advice we received from the Department of Labour and the process we followed did not satisfy the authority, which shows just how complex and complicated these matters can be."
The ambulance service was pleased that the ERA agreed it that Ms Adams' conduct made her ongoing employment untenable, Mr O'Beirne said.
