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Payouts to fired Health Ministry researchers revealed

The cash settlements paid to two of eight Health Ministry researchers fired as part of a privacy breach investigation in 2012 are now public.
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Ron Mattson, who settled a wrongful-dismissal and defamation suit with the province in 2014, received $240,039, according to documents.

The cash settlements paid to two of eight Health Ministry researchers fired as part of a privacy breach investigation in 2012 are now public.

Payments under the Crown Proceeding Act report for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2015, show the province paid a total of $285,939 to two researchers.

Ron Mattson, who settled a wrongful-dismissal and defamation suit in August 2014 after the B.C. government said it made a “regrettable mistake” in firing him, received a total of $240,039.

Government documents show the province settled the claim for $165,000 in damages plus $75,039 for legal costs. Mattson did not return to his job at the ministry.

Malcolm Maclure sued the government in September 2012 for wrongful dismissal and defamation, claiming the breach of his employment contract was “motivated by bad faith and was unfair, high-handed and reprehensible.”

Maclure settled his lawsuit with the province in July 2014 and was rehired by the ministry. Documents say he was reimbursed for legal costs and disbursements in the amount of $45,900.

The payments stem from a 2012 Health Ministry investigation into allegations related to privacy breaches, data mismanagement and contracting irregularities.

As a result of the probe, seven Health Ministry employees and at least one contractor were fired.

One of them, University of Victoria PhD co-op student Roderick MacIsaac, committed suicide. The government has apologized to MacIsaac’s family for his “heavy-handed” firing.

All fought their dismissals.

Robert Neil Hart was rehired in March 2014. Hart was given back his job “as a demonstration of the government’s continuing confidence in him, as a loyal and dedicated public servant with over 29 years service,” said his lawyer, Bob Gill. The rest of his settlement is not known.

Meanwhile, the unionized employees — Ramsay Hamdi, David Scott and MacIsaac — had their cases handled by the B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union through arbitration. As a result, resignation letters replaced their dismissal letters.

As a settlement, MacIsaac’s sister received a cheque for $482.53 in the mail for the three days remaining in MacIsaac’s co-op term after he was fired.

In March, Scott resumed work in the Health Ministry as a health economist, hospital and ambulatory analytics. He was treated as a new employee, after applying for the job in a competitive process.

Scott had worked for the ministry for 12 years as a senior researcher before he was fired.

In December 2015, the B.C. government settled with Rebecca Warburton and Bill Warburton, the last of the eight who were fired.

Deputy attorney general Richard Fyfe said the Warburtons acknowledged that they did breach some rules and procedures and the province recognized that such breaches were motivated by their intention to further the research goals of the Ministry of Health, and not for their own personal gain.

Details of the agreement were not disclosed, but the Warburtons indicated in a statement that it involved a sizable amount of cash.

Ombudsperson Jay Chalke is reviewing the 2012 Health Ministry investigation that led to the firings and what happened afterward to make recommendations to government so that such an event isn’t repeated.

His report, which will be made public, is expected in the fall.

ceharnett@timescolonist.com