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Sunday Star Times
August 18 1996
Council appeals against $1m payout
A city council's appeal against a $1 million compensation payout awarded to
workers sacked from a civic creche starts on Wednesday.
The Appeal Court hearing is expected to last two days.
Last year, the Employment Court awarded $1 million to 13 former Christchurch
Civic Creche workers who lost their jobs when it closed amid allegations of
child abuse in 1992.
Chief Employment Court Judge Tom Goddard was critical of the city council's
treatment of the workers.
Creche worker Peter Ellis was found guilty in 1993 on child abuse charges and
jailed for 10 years. An appeal failed.
The bulk of the compensation was awarded to four women who were also charged
with child abuse but had the allegations dropped by police.
The workers' lawyer, Hans van Schreven, said the compensation had not been
paid because a stay was granted by the court pending the appeal.
He knows the grounds for the appeal but cannot comment.
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