Michael Slezak was threatened with disciplinary action after a piece he wrote in The Australian Financial Review drew concern inside ABC, and the union committee warned members the dispute had become a press freedom issue. Simon Robinson called him into a meeting last week and raised concerns over his conduct.
The warning reached about 1000 union members on Monday, and 165 union member staff had signed an open letter by Monday afternoon. The union has called a members’ meeting for Tuesday as the dispute moves from a private management discussion into a broader test of whether ABC staff can be disciplined for outside commentary.
ABC guidelines and Slezak
The article at the center of the dispute argued against plans to limit publicly available information about company directors in Australia. Slezak said the Australian Institute of Company Directors and Mark Rigotti was using the Bondi terror attack as a “shield” to help push forward changes to access personal information of prominent company directors.
Simon Robinson and Lee Glendinning said Slezak may have breached the ABC’s external work policy and code of conduct. An ABC spokesperson said Robinson’s meeting with him was held to make sure there was “a clear and consistent understanding” of how the broadcaster’s guidelines should be applied and upheld.
Union response to Robinson
The union said Slezak had a pre-existing written agreement with the broadcaster that predated Robinson’s arrival and allowed him to engage in public comment on behalf of journalists in his senior role with MEAA. Adam Portelli said “it is deeply concerning that Slezak has faced threats of disciplinary action over advocacy he was previously approved to undertake by the ABC as an election union representative.”
Angus Grigg, David Marr, Avani Dias, Paddy Manning and Ian Verrender were among the 165 staff who signed the open letter. The list gives the dispute weight inside ABC because it includes journalists backing an assurance against intimidation or reprisal, not just a complaint about one opinion piece.
Tuesday and the ABC
Justin Stevens left in May, and Robinson joined ABC last month from, where he was the outlet’s second-most senior editor globally. The union meeting on Tuesday is the next known step, and the ABC’s response to Slezak’s conduct will determine whether the warning stays a dispute over policy or turns into formal discipline.
