Last updated 13:57, May 15 2018
ROBERT KITCHIN/STUFF
Minister of Justice Andrew Little says he will be dealing with the question of appointments of the commissioners "as a matter of priority".
Justice Minister Andrew Little talks about the breakdown in the culture of the Human Rights Commission.
The Human Rights Commission failed in its handling of sexual harassment claims, a ministerial review has found.
In addition Justice Minister Andrew Little said he would be dealing with the question of appointments of the commissioners "as a matter of priority".
The review follows a sexual harassment incident in October 2017, where a young American woman cut short her internship after she was groped by the organisation's chief financial officer at a work party.
Minister of Justice Andrew Little says he will be dealing with the question of appointments of the commissioners "as a matter of priority".
The commission investigated a sexual harassment complaint against Kyle Stutter, which resulted in disciplinary action. However, he remains employed there as chief financial officer. It was later revealed three commission staff had been investigated for sexual harassment dating back to 2013.
On Tuesday, Little released the results of the review, carried out by retired Judge Coral Shaw, in relation to the internal handling of sexual harassment claims and its organisational culture.
Cynthia Brophy has been the chief executive of the Human Rights Commission since 2015.The review found strategic leadership by the current board was compromised by "a lack of cooperation and communication between commissioners, and between commissioners and the chief executive (pictured)".
"Her findings reveal a system that failed to provide proper care and support for sexual harassment claims made by staff," Little said.
The review found some sexual harassment occurred within the commission, "but was not prevalent or endemic".
It also found the policy used to investigate the sexual harassment incident - The Dignity at Work policy - was "aged and outdated".
While the commission had recently improved its systems and processes for dealing with sexual harassment complaints by adopting a new policy, it was formulated without full consultation with employees.
Little said the review of the commission's procedures and organisational culture came after recent concerns about the handling of allegations of sexual harassment.
"It is vital that New Zealanders have trust and confidence in the Human Rights Commission as New Zealand's authority for dealing with complaints about sexual harassment."
DEEP DIVIDE BETWEEN STAFF AND MANAGERS
The review also found issues surrounding governance and management structures and arrangements, including a lack of trust and communication between staff, and managers and commissioners.
"There is a deep divide between some staff and some managers, and a lack of trust in the management and the commissioners among some staff," the report said.
It also found strategic leadership by the current board was compromised by "a lack of cooperation and communication between commissioners, and between commissioners and the chief executive".
Meanwhile, the report said staff members' lack of information and trust in management to deal appropriately with their complaints was a potential impediment to the successful implementation of the new sexual harassment policy.
Little said he would be meeting with the State Services Commission on Tuesday to discuss the next steps to fulfil the report's recommendations. He was also awaiting advice form the Ministry of Justice, and had spoken to all commissioners and the chief executive, and he would now deal with the question of commissioner appointments, "as a matter of priority".