ACT hospital workers have slammed the territory government's decision not to hold a board of inquiry into allegations of widespread bullying and harassment in Canberra's health system.
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The ACT Opposition earlier this week called for a Royal Commission-style investigation into systemic bullying in both Calvary and Canberra Hospital.
The motion was voted down in the Legislative Assembly by the government and the Greens, with Health Minister Meegan Fitzharris dismissing the inquiry as a political stunt.
However, multiple health workers have told the Sunday Canberra Times an inquiry is overdue, with calls for one falling on deaf ears.
A senior ACT Health worker, going under the pseudonym Charlie, said he was devastated at the news the inquiry would not get off the ground.
"I was totally gutted, I'm absolutely astounded. This is seriously well overdue and this stuff is so systemic and it's been ongoing for so long," Charlie said.
"When you think about the consequences of not doing an investigation, there'll be more years of injuries or mental health issues or physical damages and breakdowns and even possible suicides as a result."
Charlie's circumstances were told to the Legislative Assembly this week by opposition health spokeswoman Vicki Dunne, who has been behind the push for an inquiry.
Ms Dunne said Charlie's situation was the "most disturbing" she had heard from the ACT Health system, with experiences of bullying leading him to the brink of suicide.
"A large inquiry needs to happen and it needs to be done by an independent body," Charlie said.
"The public need to be informed."
Other hospital workers, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said a larger inquiry is needed as current investigations have not worked.
"People are still very scared to do their jobs. If an investigation is done properly it will expose it all," one employee said.
"Anyone who speaks up about bullying and harassment in the workplace is considered a troublemaker.
"Health authorities have said they've looked into it and made changes, but we have not see any changes to workplace culture at all. People are still hurting and no one takes responsibility."
Another hospital employee said bullying is still rampant within Canberra's hospitals.
"Nothing has changed, people are still being bullied all the time," the employee said.
"The government has talked about saving money [by not undertaking the investigation], but how much money do you put on the price of a life, whether they are staff members or patients."
"At the moment it's an absolute joke and I'm sure there are many more people who are disheartened."
Calls for an inquiry into bullying in the ACT health system comes after the Sunday Canberra Times revealed earlier this year multiple allegations of harassment at Calvary Hospital in several departments, with an investigation under way into the suicide of an employee who was allegedly bullied at work.
Documents obtained under freedom of information revealed two ACT Health workers were sacked in 2016-17 for bullying and harassment, with a further three resigning before the investigation concluded.
Centenary Hospital staff have also told the Canberra Times of bullying in wards and poor working conditions.
The Health Minister said she would rather see money that would go towards an inquiry be spent on other health services.
"It is likely to cost tens of millions of dollars and as the minister for health I would rather be spending tens of millions of dollars on hospital services, on employing more doctors and nurses than on lawyers on a board of inquiry," Ms Fitzharris said earlier this week.
"What [the Canberra Liberals] are calling for is serious and significant and they have not thought through what that would involve."
ACT Greens leader Shane Rattenbury also voted down the move to set up an inquiry, but did seek a formal commitment from the government to report by the end of the year on bullying complaints.
Charlie said an inquiry is urgently needed so other employees won't have to suffer bullying at work like himself.
"I'm almost in awe that something this systemic and long running and this evident wouldn't be investigated," he said.
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