A GRANDMOTHER who was sacked by a primary school after 19 years of
service claims she was bullied by the principal and other staff.
Lois Craggill, 67, worked as a teacher's aide at Albion North primary until
she was dismissed while on long service leave.
Mrs Craggill, who has eight grandchildren, said yesterday that principal
Randall Shields had falsely claimed she was disruptive. "I've never raised
my voice at people, I have never bullied anybody. These allegations are
so petty," she said.
Mrs Craggill, who was on an annual salary of $33,000, said she was
devastated by her sacking and was considering legal action. "He (Mr Shields)
told me 'I can't afford you at the school, we're $70,000 in deficit, have you
thought of retiring'?" she said.
Mr Shields denied the bullying claim and said he was not involved in the
outcome of Mrs Craggill's case. "There's two sides to every story," he said.
Last year, more than 170 new WorkCover stress claims involving
government teachers were reported in Victoria, up from 125 in 2006.
Over the past three years at least $13 million has been paid in compensation
to 423 public school teachers and 38 principals. Most claimants were
secondary school teachers.
Australian Education Union state president Mary Bluett said bullying
incidents between teachers were not common, but could be destructive
when they occurred.
"Schools are stressful places and sometimes a trigger tips teachers
over the edge," she said.
It was hard to transfer teachers with problems because of autonomy.
Article from: The Herald Sun
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