I’m John: Orwellian email

177 Comments / PR Crisis, Questions for the Board, Recruitment Crisis / By

Orwell 1984

We have received an email from an NSFT email address. It reads:

Dear Campaign

I am contacting you as requested by my employer as a result of disciplinary action taken against me.

I have been instructed to; “..request the removal of the audio file and provide evidence of when this is complete…”.

Sadly, this request means that I have to both contact you for the first time, and also reveal my identity to you, which I would prefer not to have done.  Please do not reveal my identity to anyone.

We are not in the business of aiding and abetting the attempted censorship of public discourse.

Ever wondered why NSFT employees feel so bullied and alienated? Now you know why.

177 thoughts on “I’m John: Orwellian email”

  1. T

    Please do not remove said audio file. Freedom of speech must prevail. The request has been received, however, you must not act on it.  NSFT cannot punish this employee further. We must show that nobody deserves to be bullied whether staff,  carer or service user. In the words of Wolfie “Power to the people”

  2. backstreet Bob

    This is preposterous – what possible right do the trust have to order an employee to make such a request. Any decent solicitor could take the trust to the cleaners for such behaviour. Unfortunately instead of actually engaging in the debate or even actually making a stand for its client group the trust has again engaged in a bunker mentality, trying to censor criticism and bully employees. NSFT you have sunk to a new low.

  3. T

    They’ve (the trust) have engaged lawyers to try “shut us up” and even banned our campaign website, all to no avail. The truth will prevail.

  4. Jessica

    After feeling extremely angry, I then flumped into sadness. I first thought this to be a joke; unbelievably it’s true.

    It begs the question, ‘who’/which face am I speaking with when I engage purposefully with senior trust members?

    Reputation is everything & this just spoils a lot of the good we’ve collaboratively achieved so far.

  6. Doc Holliday

    Given the email author states I have had to contact you for the first time is this to be read as an employee who didn’t supply the file has, as part of a disciplinary, been told to write to request the actions of a 3rd party are removed? In other words is the person on disciplinary not connected to the audio file? As it reads it simply beggars belief

  7. carly

    This was a radio Norfolk phone in…. so surely they are the only ones who could ask campaign to remove it? And they haven’t. All John said has been widely reported for months and is well established in the public domain. Idiots. You would think they have more important issues to prioritise?

  8. Terry Skyrme

    Just some quotes from an email sent to all NSFT staff on 24/9/14 from Michael Scott, Chief Executive of the Trust, in conjunction with Unison……”We are sending this joint letter to emphasize the importance of staff health and well being…..We are a major provider of mental health services, so it is a sad irony that a quarter of our staff absences are attributed to stress,anxiety and depression.”Was this written before or after the Trust put their staff member through the ordeal of a disciplinary procedure?

  9. JamesR

    I’m confused. If I understand this correctly, the Trust has demanded that an employee contacts the Campaign to demand that a piece of audio, for which the Trust holds no copyright, is removed. As part of a disciplinary action??

    Surely, if the audio in question was so contentious, and factually inaccurate, the Trust should be speaking to the people who hold the copyright, in this case the BBC?

    Even if the employee were actually featured in the audio, he would have absolutely no rights if his participation were consensual. I know the BBC isn’t perfect (and our local stations worst of all), but I don’t think they’ve yet sunk to tying people down and extracting comment out of them via torture!

    This culture of bullying and harassment at NSFT is now extreme. Surely if staff can’t function properly because they live in fear, the CQC has to step in?

    Of course, the Trust will say that this person’s comments has “brought the Trust into disrepute”. I say “that ship has sailed and is halfway around the world by now!”.

  10. JamesR

    Let’s also not forget the news item I posted on these pages a few weeks ago relating to the Trust encouraging people to speak out. You can find it here  http://norfolksuffolkmentalhealthcrisis.org.uk/forums/topic/im-sorry-ill-read-that-again-double-take/

    I guess that didn’t last long!

  11. Backstreet Bob

    I do not see how anyone could claim that the comments in the radio show could be construed as bringing anyone into disrepute. These were more general questions as to the sincerity of Mr Hunt and his genuine or otherwise commitment to the services he claims to support.

     

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