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Interview by Clare Jerrom, reporter with communitycare.co.uk

John Power

Social worker John Power is celebrating this month following a successful claim for unfair dismissal from his job as a telephone counsellor with the NSPCC’s child protection helpline.

Acting in his role as British Union of Social Work Employees’ representative, Power alerted Community Care to staff grievances over restructuring and job losses that appeared on the charity’s internal website.

But he was suspended from his role, that he had held for 11 years, for forwarding the information, which included extracts from the charity’s intranet chat page where members of staff had admitted shock and disappointment at the NSPCC’s plans to scrap 18 projects.

Last week, the central London employment tribunal ruled unanimously that the NSPCC acted improperly when sacking Power last January. The material on the chat site was not of a confidential or personal nature, and there was no evidence of Power breaking any clear company rules on use of email information.

Here Power, who now works for Hertfordshire council, tells Clare Jerrom how he feels about his actions now the experience is over.

Clare Jerrom: Do you believe union representatives should do more to publicise staff concerns over workplace issues?

John Power: Absolutely and particularly when the employer procures public

monies by way of donations.

CJ: Do you feel information published on a company internal website is public information or confidential?

JP: In my case the information I forwarded to Community Care was not by its nature confidential material. As part of my duties on the helpline I handled confidential child protection allegations, but this information was contained in an entirely separate data bank. It would be inappropriate to divulge this information externally. A charity like the NSPCC has to be transparent about service reductions if it is to retain the confidence of the public.

CJ: Do you think organisations should be clearer on rules over confidentiality on internal websites, if they exist, to prevent confusion over the issue?

JP: There needs to be clarity about the rules governing IT usage, backed up by training, appropriate signage and agreed in advance with employee representatives at national level as recommended by the ACAS guidelines.

CJ: Are union representatives too frightened to publicise workplace concerns for fear of repercussions such as suspension?

JP: Absolutely. There remains within the NSPCC considerable fear amongst staff, even employee representatives, about publicising workplace issues. The current proposals to reduce the helpline in London have left staff there paralysed with despair and very reluctant to challenge the proposals because of what happened to me.

CJ: What do you think could be done to protect union representatives in the same situation that you were in?

JP: In my case, if the NSPCC had been aware of their own rules on internet usage, had they not been so blindly obsessed with maintaining their brand image and had they agreed for me to be represented at the investigatory interview by the full time official as I was entitled to as an employee representative, I believe this whole debacle could have been avoided.

CJ: Do you think there is any difference in the protection given in the voluntary sector compared to the statutory sector?

JP: In my experience the protection given in the statutory sector is far greater because statutory sector employee organisations have far greater critical mass. Statutory sector employers are able and generally willing to call upon a range of expertise and experience.

CJ: Has the experience discouraged you from working in the voluntary sector or was your move to Hertfordshire council for different reasons?

JP: I was working part time for both Hertfordshire and the NSPCC. Working for Hertfordshire I have very positive relationships with the voluntary sector and I would not be discouraged from seeking employment in that sector in future.

CJ: Do you feel your actions were justified?

JP: Yes my actions were justified. This is confirmed by the tribunal’s findings.

CJ: Would you do the same again? Do you feel it was worth it?

JP: It will have only been worth it if the NSPCC takes a long hard look at itself, becomes more transparent and democratic and halts the move away from child protection and the delivery of direct localised services to children and families ; i.e. the inexorable shift towards becoming an almost entirely "virtual" organisation.

I would do the same again because I think the direction of the NSPCC is a matter of public interest.

CJ: What are your plans for the future?

JP: I continue to work in Hertfordshire full time as a senior practitioner working almost exclusively with children and families involved in care proceedings. Hertfordshire has been extremely sympathetic throughout this long ordeal and I am grateful to my care group manager Lin Phillips in particular for her support throughout.