Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Does bullying and intimidation just disappear?

It’s seven months since a leaked staff survey at Lyndoch Living revealed poor staff morale and serious allegations of intimidation and bullying that went right to the very top – nothing has been heard of it since.

Was anything done within Lyndoch to address these allegations, and to lift poor staff morale?

This is another question to add to the list for tomorrow’s (27/10) Annual General Meeting, which we cannot attend as it’s by invitation-only Zoom (Lyndoch says a recording will be uploaded later to its website).

It’s a question that should concern us all.

Long-term readers will know that The Terrier has written a series of stories questioning why more than 80 staff had left the aged care home in the past two years, amid allegations of staff being targeted, bullied and devalued.

The special survey was held in response to these stories and the results leaked in March confirmed the toxic environment.

A majority of respondents raised issues of being overworked and under-valued, and claimed management favoured some staff over others.

Two-third of respondents said Lyndoch did not uphold its values, starting from the CEO down.

The survey then went on to report this bombshell:

“A small sample of around 10-15 respondents stated that the CEO’s culture of intimidation, manipulation and bullying greatly impacted their safety, health and wellbeing.

They said they witnessed her bullying others and making decisions in regard to her own self-interests and not the organisation as a whole.”

Sadly none of the allegations in the survey came as a surprise to me, as by March I had spoken to dozens of people who all told the same heartbreaking and terrible stories of being managed out, pushed out, demeaned, isolated, or cut loose.

Lyndoch’s culture, like that of the Warrnambool City Council, had gone bad.

South-west MP Roma Britnell, a former nurse, had been similarly contacted by people seeking her intervention and in March she demanded a meeting with the CEO and Lyndoch board.

Then Covid-19 hit.

And the meeting between Ms Britnell and Lyndoch never happened.

So, I have to ask again, does bullying, intimidation and low staff morale just disappear?

Of course it doesn’t.

As of today, I have never had a response from Lyndoch to requests for a comment on this staff survey, the allegations, or what actions it has taken to address the allegations, but CEO Doreen Power told the local newspaper at the time that she would “take on board” the findings.

Ms Britnell, in a statement, said she continues “to have discussions with Lyndoch Living on a range of matters”, which – I guess – is hopeful.

In the meantime, Lyndoch is about to launch another anonymous staff survey – this one is held every two years – to again take the pulse on staff wellbeing and whether everyone is heading “in the same direction”….rather than, perhaps, out the door.

“I encourage you to be completely honest,” Ms Power has written in an email to staff.

Well, yes, but what happens after the staff are honest, as they were the last time they were surveyed?

That’s what I am hungry to know, as are all those who have left Lyndoch these past five years in less than happy circumstances.

This next survey is being run by Alignment Partners, owned by a fellow named Michael Webb, who has worked in the past with Lyndoch on management-type issues.

So many surveys.

I made a promise to those who entrusted me with their stories that I would not look away until the issues and allegations were addressed and we, as the community who owns Lyndoch, could take comfort that they were being addressed.

It’s the same promise I made to Warrnambool City Council staff who filled out survey after survey for a decade and saw nothing change…until everything blew open.

We may not be able to Zoom in on the Lyndoch AGM tomorrow, but we are watching.

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Carol Altman – The Terrier

Happy news: I am supposed to be taking a break…but there has been a breakthrough with the fight to stop Wannon Water’s plans to continue to pour effluent into our ocean off Thunder Point for the next 20 years.

Before this $40m, more-of-the-same project goes any further, the EPA has asked WW to provide a whole raft of extra, expert detail on, among other things:

1. Public Health Concerns, including assessing pathogens in the wastewater and the impact of humans being exposed to these bacteria and viruses in the ocean, including through seafood.

2. A health risk assessment of the ‘dirty decants’ (like that pictured) where solids and untreated waste water are released into the ocean.

3. Marine discharge concerns, including phosphorous levels.

4. Treatment process concerns, including the dirty decants that the EPA agrees have happened “multiple times in the past two years” and how these will be prevented.

5. Preventing the discharge of microplastics and;

6. Responding to each of the 83 public submissions received on this proposal, of which 78 were against the plan as it stood.

The fight is not over, but my word, this is a victory for the voices and for Colleen Hughson’s bravery in the face of immense corporate pressure, and for all of those people who took the time and effort to say ‘not good enough’ to Wannon Water.

We care about our ocean and we don’t want some cheap option that “will do” for the next 20 years.

Industry needs to sort out its own pollution and not expect to use Thunder Point as a dumping ground, or they should pay more toward making sure this is a first class/tertiary treatment plant that disposes only clean water into the sea.

Our kids and grandkids will thank us for this fight.

I am feeling happy tonight.

You can read the EPA document in full here.

(If you haven’t watched the community video yet, tonight is the night. Most people have/had no idea what is happening out there near Shelly Beach, but they do now.)

This is worth running in full: a Letter to the Editor of the Warrnambool Standard from 15 February 2020.

It says it all.

Membership rejected:

“I recently applied to be a ‘Member’ at Lyndoch. The application form itself is a curiosity. It seeks no information re educational or professional qualifications or work or life experience. The form doesn’t require a witness. My application was peremptorily and summarily dismissed in what appears as one liner pro forma rejection letter.

I am a recently retired lawyer of nearly 40 years experience, previous AHPRA Board Member, previous Veterans Board Member, Supreme Court Registrar, Legal Consultant at a Royal Commission and so on.

Similarly my husband, a recently retired AFP Officer after 38 years of service including in Afghanistan was also rejected with the same wording from Lyndoch.

Has any member of the public not directly associated with Lyndoch been accepted as a member?

Is Lyndoch’s approach to bona fide member applications consistent with the requirements and expectations of the broader community whom Lyndoch purports to serve?”

Lynn Hudson, Warrnambool

By Carol Altmann

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] T[/dropcap]he success of The Artery art space in Warrnambool since opening just over two years ago has been nothing short of extraordinary, and it is getting bigger.

The F Project – the volunteer art collective behind The Artery – already manages 30 artist studios, a community gallery space and a retail shop and, before the end of the year, it will take over the five-bedroom, top floor of the Timor St building to accommodate a visiting artists and artists-in-residence program.

As F Project president Dr Emma Charlton explains, the expansion is the next step in a five-year plan to build The Artery into a dedicated arts space that serves local artists and visiting artists, while at the same time building a strong arts presence in the community.

“A large part of The Artery is about getting art out into the community and to develop an appreciation of the arts in our community, and I think we are certainly achieving that,” she says.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] P[/dropcap]rior to leasing the former Guyett’s funeral home at 224 Timor St, the F Project – which started in 2008 –  had a less prominent space upstairs in what was the old Fletcher Jones shop on the corner of Liebig and Koroit streets.

But as vice president Helen Bunyon says, creating a new, street-front premises has been a game-changer.

“It really has created a central contact point for the arts in this community and has taken off like topsy. We always have people dropping in, coming to ask questions, or wanting to become involved,” she says.

Emma adds that The Artery has become a way for new artists who arrive in town to find an immediate audience and creative network.

She gives the example of artist Caroline Healey, originally from the UK, who recently moved to Warrnambool and volunteers as the group’s public relations officer. Largely through her connections with the F Project/Artery, Caroline has already established a following for her work and will soon hold an exhibition.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] A[/dropcap]s it happens, the gallery space – which is hired out to artists and hosts various art events such as the South-West International Women’s Day Art Prize – has a fully booked calendar for 2016.

As such, it has virtually replaced the original intention of the Alan Lane Community Gallery at the Warrnambool Art Gallery.

The 30 studios wax and wane in occupancy and some artists have moved on to set up their own professional studios at places like Factory Arts, in the former Fletcher Jones factory.

There is no doubt, however, that the F Project has become integral to just about every community arts event in Warrnambool.

This includes the Warrnambool City Council’s ‘Hidden Histories’ project that saw 10 different events held in the city’s laneways, to Arts on the Grass, to the murals appearing in laneways, the Fletcher Jones Christmas picnics, the refurbishment of Patloch Lane, numerous arts markets, and even the replacement of the city’s tired Christmas decorations.

But is it too much for a volunteer group?

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] U[/dropcap]nlike the Julia St Creative Space in Portland, The Artery/F Project receives no council funding other than that provided to fulfil specific projects such as the laneways.

Julia St is also volunteer based, but has a part-time Community Arts Officer employed by the Glenelg Shire Council and operates in a council-owned building.

The WCC no longer has a community arts officer, but is reaping the many benefits of having the F Project/Artery fill the gap for free.

Neither Emma or Helen wish to get into the politics of council funding, but Emma acknowledges the dependency on volunteers and says the group plans to apply for an Australia Council grant next year to employ a part-time coordinator.

When I asked how many hours they each devote to the Artery/F Project each week, both Helen and Emma answer “between 10 and 20”, although I know they are being modest.

Both are keen to stress that the workload is shared among many.

“We have people involved who bring a whole range of different skills and, for others, it is a way of developing those skills,” Helen says.

“It is a lot of responsibility,” Emma adds. “But the negatives are far out-weighed by the coolness.”

[box]The Artery is at 224 Timor St, Warrnambool and is open from Wed-Sun 10am to 4pm. The retail area sells works by local artists. The current exhibition is Small Gems, the F Project Members Christmas Show, until 3 January. You can find The Artery on Facebook here. P: (03) 55 62 1109 [/box]

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Discovering the voice of Vanessa Parkinson

No shying away from social commentary: Megan Cheyne

Broken link prompts a fresh start: Jenny Altmann

The quiet contemplation of still life: Jan Allan

Dynamic duo step out on their own: Glenn Morgan & Barry Tate

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #8F9F59;”] H [/dropcap]ow many times have you been lured into buying a sumptuous-looking cookbook, only to find that the fine print includes ingredients that you have either never heard of, or which are almost impossible to buy? (Fresh bamboo sticks, dried banana leaf, mud crab…)

And we all own at least one cookbook that has such convaluted, complex recipes that even if you source the ingredients, you haven’t got time to devote an entire day to making dinner.

There are no such problems with this week’s choice for Bookmarks, which is a collection of recipes from the Port Fairy Consolidated School and Community.

This is what Michaelie Clark, from Warrnambool Books, has to say about her selection:

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #8F9F59;”] ‘T [/dropcap]his book was released by the Port Fairy Consolidated School and Community last year and is very impressive (deviates greatly from the old binders you used to get with photocopies of Mum’s yo-yo recipe, etc)!

It has been a consistent seller since its release.

In 2007, the Port Fairy Consolidated School made a successful application to join the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program, which gave the students the tools and support to grow, harvest, prepare and share food, with a strong focus on the value of local produce.

An important result of the program is the Shared Hands Cookbook, a beautiful collection of recipes from the school and its associates, the local culinary community, and others they are inspired by. The book includes high quality, full-colour photos of most of the dishes, plus lots of images from the garden, the school and around the town.

The recipes are easy to follow, diverse and incredibly tempting (the ‘Baked Zucchini Stuffed with Spicy Rice’ and the ‘Quince and White Chocolate Muffins’ would be pretty hard to pass up), but best of all is the book’s wonderful local flavour.’

Yum!

[box] You can keep up with new releases at Warrnambool Books via its Facebook page.[/box]

 Catch up on our other Bookmarks…

Ben Sanders: Retro meets whimsy

Gorgeous working dogs

Getting fit the fun way with Marie Bean

Can Paul Jennings put a foot wrong?