Glen Buckley and Australian small business -V- CASA

[glenb]

Response to Ombudsman letter 23/09 Refer post #1729

Dear Mark of the Commonwealth Ombudsman’s Office,

I apologise if my correspondence of 19/01/21 was not clear on this matter.

In your correspondence you noted; “one of the only outcomes we could potentially obtain for you would be an apology from CASA, and advice that it did not direct the Employer to end your employment. Please let me know if you are still interested in obtaining a written apology and formal advice from CASA that it did not give a direction to your Employer in relation to your continuing employment. I can contact CASA to arrange for this if you would like.”

I interpreted that as having two components;

• one of the only outcomes we could potentially obtain from you would be an apology from CASA and
• advice that it did not direct the Employer to end your employment

For clarity, I do expect an apology.

Regarding the first component, advice that “CASA did not direct my Employer to end my employment”., I felt that was of little value because CASA clearly did send an email directing my Employer to end my employment. I don’t believe that is in dispute by anyone, therefore, I could see little value in that component. It happened. It can’t “unhappen”

I do however very much expect an apology, and clarity around that direction.

I have had my two businesses shut down by CASA and. I was then forced out of the industry by that direction from the CASA Regional Manager. It was not practical that I could work in the industry again after that direction. It would and did become public knowledge very quickly.

Industry experience indicates that CASA usually restricted such directions to face to face verbal “suggestions”, rather than as written directives as in my case, for obvious reasons.

As you are aware several businesses were forced into closure by CASAs actions against me. Staff lost their jobs, careers were affected, staff lost entitlements. Suppliers were left unpaid, students training was impacted, and personally I was bankrupted. The moment that CASA put those restrictions on my business, it was doomed.

The personal cost to me runs into many millions of dollars, but there are also approximately one million of debts to parties that were completely innocent, and directly impacted by CASAs actions. They should not have been affected. It is reasonable that many of them would think poorly of me. If CASA shut me down, it would be logical that Glen Buckley had committed some very serious breaches of either a safety or regulatory manner.

Almost everyone in my life has been impacted, including three generations of my family. I have lived in this same area my entire 56 years, and everyone in my community knows that CASA shut me down and I was bankrupted. Its unbearably embarrassing and humiliating.

When I tried to find work and potential employers asked me what happened after 25 years in the aviation industry, I have to explain how CASA closed my business down and then sent an email to my Employer. In an interview that obviously raises concern. Its hard to sweep 25 years under the mat.

My families welfare has been absolutely decimated by the closure of the businesses. My mental health and physical health have been equally decimated. I carry an enormous burden every waking minute of the harm, that I have caused to so many.

My reputation has been absolutely trashed, and I am just too embarrassed to engage with anyone at all from the aviation industry. Many who have been significantly impacted.

None of this is based on safety, regulatory breaches, or quality outcomes. To anyone that doesn’t know the details behind this situation, it is likely that they will assume that Australia’s aviation safety regulator came down hard on me, and that I must have done something that was a grave and imminent risk to safety. When in fact, it clearly wasn’t.

I feel that an apology regarding that direction made public is a fair and reasonable request. It is essential that the apology identify that the direction was made on the basis of comments that I was making publicly, and not based on safety concerns or regulatory breaches.

I request that the apology be published nationally, and my preference would be that it is placed in Australian Flying or on the CASA website.

I am hopeful that you can assist me in obtaining an apology on this matter, and it seems a very fair and reasonable request, and it is very important to me.

Thanking you in anticipation of your consideration, respectfully, Glen Buckley.