According to Professor Glyn Davis AC, the secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, the new federal anti-corruption body will encourage public servants to reflect on how their actions align with their Code of Conduct.
Professor Davis made the comment in an interview with The Australian Financial Review in late 2022.
The Australian Public Service Code of Conduct requires officials to act and administer programs according to certain principles, including integrity and respect for stakeholders and the public. It demands the highest standards.
Within three weeks of making this comment in the interview, Professor Davis wrote to the chief executive of the Centre for Community-Driven Research, Kate Holliday, directing that she continue to engage with the official in the Department of Health and Aged Care who were the subject of a formal complaint of bullying.
"I understand Health has advised you that the [redacted] remains the appropriate point of contact for all matters associated with the administration of your organisation’s PPP [Patient Pathways Program] grant, including the acquittal process," he said in the correspondence dated 23 December 2022.
Correspondence, including email exchanges, shows that Health effectively removed the official from the complaint despite the fact they were named.
Professor Davis acknowledged the complaint but said it was ultimately a matter for health department secretary Professor Brendan Murphy AC.
In a final extraordinary suggestion, Australia's most senior bureaucrat said he was "sorry" for the distress caused by these matters and recommended that Ms Holliday contact non-government support organisations, including Lifeline.
The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet had not responded to questions from BioPharmaDispatch at the time of publication.
The federal government's own statutory agency with responsibility for providing advice on workplace health and safety, Safe Work Australia, provides guidance on the handling of allegations of workplace bullying.
It says all matters should be treated seriously and assessed on their merits and facts. The person accused of bullying should be treated as innocent until proven otherwise while the person reporting the alleged conduct should be respectfully listened to and their report treated as credible and reliable unless conclusively proven otherwise.
"It is important to ensure anyone who reports workplace bullying is not victimised for doing so," it says, adding, "If necessary interim measures should be taken to minimise the risk to health or safety. This may involve temporarily reassigning tasks, separating the parties involved or granting leave."
