Council worker fired for telling the plain truth

Australia:

A young council roads worker has been sacked after commenting on Facebook that the council had too many office staff and not enough workers.

Alec Armstrong, 21, posted the remarks on a Hepburn Shire residents' page last month and had his employment terminated five weeks later for what the council called "intimidating or offensive" behaviour.

In postings made after hours on June 2, Mr Armstrong said council had 140 staff, but only 30 who worked outdoors. "Shows you how top heavy they are," he posted.

He said outdoor employees never had enough money to do the job properly. "I work on the roads for the shire. There would be four office staff to one of us. Their (sic) slack, and we need less office staff who aren't slack and do the job a bit more. We never have enough money to do a job the way it should be done. That's why rates are going up. Keep blaming it on the useless staff above us."

When confronted by office managers about the postings, Mr Armstrong said he immediately removed them and apologised. In a letter to council chief executive officer Kaylene Conrick July 7, Mr Armstrong expressed his "deep regrets" over the incident. He admitted it was "inappropriate, disrespectful and lacked the professionalism" required by Hepburn Shire Council employees.

Hepburn Shire Acting CEO Evan King said the decision to sack Mr Armstrong was made following due process. In a written statement he said: "The employee breached the code of conduct, and based on an assessment of the seriousness of the breach, it was deemed the employment of the employee should be terminated."

SOURCE

Truth hurts