The ACT government has been accused of waiting for a terminally ill Canberra Theatre Centre manager to die rather than treat him humanely after it was found to be liable for a psychological injury he suffered at work.
The government has admitted it regrets the delay in exploring the potential to offer Michael Ranieri a voluntary redundancy, but it has now advised him that is not an option and that he is free to return to his role.
That suggestion has, however, been slammed by Mr Ranieri's lawyer, David Healey, who has likened the proposition to "putting a domestic violence victim back in the abusive relationship".
Documents provided to The Canberra Times show Mr Ranieri, a front-of-house manager at the Canberra Theatre Centre, made a worker's compensation claim in 2018.
He alleged he had suffered verbal and physical abuse while on the job with the government's Cultural Facilities Corporation, detailing a long list of incidents.
These included being sworn at and having a document thrown at him by a supervisor, who he claimed later told him: "The only mistake I made was that I did it in front of someone."
Mr Ranieri also detailed being overworked to the point he was "completely exhausted and felt beyond burnt out".
Among other incidents, he also described being deeply upset after a superior allegedly asked him "why don't you just leave?" when the topic of his terminal illness came up.
He ended up going on sick leave, and making the compensation claim, when he began to feel "completely vulnerable" around two particular people in the workplace.
After an initial decision that the government was not liable to compensate Mr Ranieri, he applied to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for a review.
The parties later reached an agreement, leading the tribunal to decide in August 2020 that he had suffered an "adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood", for which the territory was liable to pay him compensation.
But a year on, Mr Ranieri told The Canberra Times he had "never received a cent".
He said he was "old school" and it was not in his nature to complain about anything, but he had been subjected to "disgraceful" treatment in his workplace.
"I have been treated with utter contempt," he said.
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Having used up his leave entitlements, he said he had no income and was living on "not much" while facing an unclear future both medically and professionally.
Mr Ranieri, who is in his 60s, was given a life expectancy of two years in September 2018, when he was diagnosed with a terminal lung disease.
He believed he had "disappointed a lot of people" by continuing to live, while Mr Healey said it seemed the ACT government was "just waiting for him to die".
"The absolute right thing to do was to give him a voluntary redundancy," Mr Healey told The Canberra Times.
"They've just sat on [requests to do this] for six months and just waited for this guy to go away."
Mr Healey said he had not seen anyone treated so poorly in the six years he had been dealing with these sorts of cases, describing the conduct of authorities as "shocking".
"They've made no attempt to put him anywhere else, or offer him any other position," he said.
"This poor bloke's just been left to die. It's below the human rights standard, really. He's got every right to feel let down."
In response to questions from The Canberra Times, an ACT government spokeswoman said the time taken to assess the potential for a voluntary redundancy was "regretted".
She said the option was "explored in good faith" but took time to resolve, with the ultimate decision being that it was not possible because it would have required Mr Ranieri's position to be abolished when there was still a need for it.
The spokeswoman said Mr Ranieri had been provided with "a range of support", including a period of special paid leave, while his position "remained open for him to return if he wished and was able to do so".
She added that all requirements of the tribunal decision, including the reimbursement of costs incurred by Mr Ranieri as a result of his psychological injury, had been "fully complied with".
"There is no ongoing liability for the territory to provide further compensation in relation to this matter," the spokeswoman said.
