Settlement in Racing Victoria bullying case brought by chief vet
The legal dispute over bullying allegations levelled by Racing Victoria’s chief vet Dr Grace Forbes against CEO Aaron Morrison and other senior executives has been resolved through a mediated settlement.
The Fair Work Commission dispute surrounding bullying claims levelled at senior Racing Victoria staff, including CEO Aaron Morrison, by chief vet Dr Grace Forbes has been settled out of court.
In the midst of a three-day hearing into an application by Dr Forbes for her employer Racing Victoria, and Morrison, Manager of People and Performance Xavier Linton and Executive General Manager – Integrity Services Jamie Stier to stop bullying, it was reported in the Herald Sun that the matter had been settled by the parties.
This prevented the likelihood that those three men would have to appear before the Commission and face questioning over the allegations levelled by Dr Forbes’ legal team.
Morrison and Stier would have faced questioning about Forbes’ claims that she was ‘pressured and coerced’ into allowing international horses with a ‘high risk’ of injury to compete in key spring features.
Dr Forbes had alleged in her Fair Work Commission application that she had been asked to be flexible in her assessment of horses in a meeting with Morisson and Stier in April this year.
“The repeated request of me to be flexible suggests that I should be unethical, which is at odds with my commitment to advocate for the horse,” she said.
Dr Forbes has been on personal leave since July.
It is not known if the settlement impacts her current position as RV’s general manager of veterinary services, or if it impacts separate Federal Court action filed in October where Dr Forbes was seeking “declarations, injunctions, compensation, interest and the imposition of penalties”.
That action was slated for a first case management hearing in February.
Dr Forbes’ barrister Nicholas Harrington had said earlier in the week that the chief vet wanted to return to work.
Racing Victoria’s legal counsel had unsuccessfully argued for an adjournment of the Fair Work Commission hearing this week until that the Federal Court case had concluded.
Neither party has commented on the terms of the settlement.
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