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When Josh mentioned this on the show, he wasn’t aware it involved the worker sacked for smirking in a meeting. Here’s the full article from the SMH:
TV program drawn into firm dispute
A Nine Network current affairs program has been drawn into a bitter dispute between a Melbourne engineering firm and its workers.
Finlay Engineering hit the headlines last month when boss Jim Sutton reportedly sacked a worker for smirking, his mate for backing him up and another worker for being absent.
A union campaign and a community picket won the men their jobs back.
On Tuesday, the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) held a barbecue at the firm’s Heidelberg plant, claiming management enlisted A Current Affair to harass staff.
The program denied the claims and accused the union of being hypocritical.
Union secretary Dave Oliver said Tuesday’s event was to protest against “bullying and harassment”.
“They (Finlay management) have allowed a film crew to chase them (the workers) around work,” he said.
“We want to send a message out to the employer that we won’t tolerate this type of behaviour.”
A Current Affair did follow-up stories after the dispute, indicating that the sacked staff had been absent on occasion since their re-hirings.
One of the three workers went on stress leave following the involvement of A Current Affair and had a WorkCover claim in progress, while another of the men had left the company, Mr Oliver said.
Following the initial involvement of A Current Affair, Mr Oliver claimed that one of the men, Vince Pascuzzi, had journalists from the show camped outside his home to take footage of him.
Mr Sutton denied his company had bullied or harassed staff members.
“If anyone has been harassed it is me. They bullied me into reinstating the three blokes. If it wasn’t for the picket, I wouldn’t have rehired them. They would have sent me broke,” he said.
Supervising producer of A Current Affair, Danny Keens, also denied the show had harassed the three men.
A letter sent from A Current Affair to Mr Oliver said: “I find it extraordinary that you would accuse A Current Affair of bullying and harassment, considering the threats reportedly made by your union to Mr Sutton with regard to re-reinstating these employees in the first place.
“I also find it extraordinary, and somewhat hypocritical that you are so concerned about the effect of media attention on your members, when just a month ago, you were happy for them to go on national television propagating your cause, when it suited,” Mr Keens wrote.
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