A lawyer for Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie has lashed two of her former employees, saying the husband and wife's allegations about being unfairly dismissed from the senator's office had "no basis in reality".
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Rob Messenger, Senator Lambie's former chief of staff, and his wife Fern Messenger, her former office manager, say they complained about their ex-boss' workplace conduct, alleging she swore and consumed alcohol excessively in the office, was prone to mood swings and that staff were "walking on egg-shells" around her.
The Messengers, who were employed in Senator Lambie's office from 2014 until May 2017, have brought an unfair dismissal case against the Commonwealth, which is being heard by Justice John Snaden. They have argued that their employment was terminated after they aired grievances about work health and safety.
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Giving closing submissions on Monday, Senator Lambie's legal counsel Nick Harrington told the Federal Court the Messengers had put "a complexion or gloss on events to make themselves out as the innocent victims".
He disputed their assertion that they had made complaints about the senator's alleged behaviour, and that it was "fundamentally inconsistent" for Mrs Messenger to arrange employment for her two teenage daughters in the same workplace she and her husband claimed to have concerns about.
Mr Harrington said there was "no evidence" that Senator Lambie had engaged in excessive alcohol consumption at work and that "almost every member of staff" that had given evidence to the court had denied they were "walking on egg-shells" around Senator Lambie.
The Messengers wrote to then-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull in March 2017 to outline some of their complaints about the senator and included a statutory declaration from Mitchell Walker, who, at the time, was employed in Senator Lambie's office on a fixed-term contract.
Mr Harrington accused Mr and Mrs Messenger of "inducing" Mr Walker to make the statement. He noted that Mr Walker had himself given evidence to the court in which he said Senator Lambie had been "a pretty good boss" and that he regretted making his comments in the form of a statutory declaration.
Mrs Messenger said she and her husband objected to Mr Harrington accusing them of serious misconduct in relation to their dealings with Mr Walker. "They've had four-and-a-half years to introduce this particular issue," she said. "And then to give it to us at the last minute ... we believe, is not in the interest of justice and it was prejudicial towards us."
Mr and Mrs Messenger will deliver their closing submissions on Tuesday.
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