Zappia victim cleared him in report
Exclusive by Josh Massoud | June 09, 2009 12:00am
JENNY Hall - the former female employee who has plunged Cronulla CEO Tony Zappia's career into turmoil - signed off on an independent workplace report that cleared her boss of any wrongdoing.
The Daily Telegraph has sighted a copy of the report, compiled late last year by a private investigator hired by the Sharks to establish Hall's grievances. It found that Zappia had not acted inappropriately and although Cronulla's board yesterday stood him down pending legal advice, the report and other considerations have blocked a push for his instant dismissal.
Now living on the Sunshine Coast, Hall broke her silence in a pre-recorded interview with Channel 7 last night. The ex-community liaison officer insisted Zappia had stood on her toes during a shadow-boxing duel that led to her accidentally suffering a black eye. She also stood by disputed claims that Sharks players were given sex toys at training and that "strippers" visited dressingrooms after matches.
Zappia will cool his heels until Thursday after a series of damning conversations with Hall - which she secretly recorded during her final weeks of employment last year - were broadcast by Seven on Sunday night. The pair discuss their now-infamous altercation before a home game against Newcastle last July, in which Hall suffered a black eye after being punched by Zappia. In one exchange, Zappia makes Hall an offer to "spank" him as a playful get-square.
"He was right here. Standing on my toes, one foot on the other, I had one foot forward and one foot back, he was treading on them and then he let out a punch," Hall said.
"He said, 'How dare you tell anyone, you're not to tell a single soul if you want to keep your job'. I only hope I can contribute to that change and no one is ever treated the way I was treated."
At the time, Cronulla's board ordered an immediate investigation. An independent workplace officer visited Sharks headquarters over the following weeks to interview all staff, including witnesses who spoke with Hall straight after she was punched.
The investigation found the punch was accidental, with the final report co-signed by Zappia and Hall after both were questioned at length. When the incident was first publicised last December, Hall refused to comment or release any details.
But she has since leaked the recorded conversations to Seven, while a friend is believed to have passed on a graphic photograph of her injuries to a Sydney newspaper. Copies of a tacky email Zappia showed her in his office have also been made public and labelled as pornography. The email contains a series of pictures of topless women from Latvia.
"There I am, an employee that you have just given a black eye to who is in tears, and there (he is) focusing on a pornographic email," Hall said.
The fresh revelations angered NRL boss David Gallop, who just two weeks ago had given the club a clean bill of health over its handling of the Hall incident.
Pressured from above, Sharks directors were widely expected to dismiss Zappia at yesterday's extraordinary meeting.
He doesn't have a contract and can be dismissed with a minimal payout. But after a two-hour discussion - which included input from Zappia via teleconference - a decision was made to stand him down in the interests of "due process".
The Daily Telegraph understands that Zappia has the support of several Sharks directors and coach Ricky Stuart to remain at the helm. In his favour at board level is the independent workplace report, as well as concerns about how his conversations with Hall were recorded and edited for broadcast. The board has been made aware that it is illegal in NSW to record conversations without prior consent.
"There will be a request to Channel 7 to provide the tape so as the board can establish the authenticity of the recordings and the context in which a number of the statements attributed to Mr Zappia have been used, while the board will also interview staff members in relation to the new allegations," Sharks chairman Barry Pierce said.
"The board has requested a response from Tony Zappia by Thursday."
Zappia will meet his lawyers over the next 48 hours to respond. He was unavailable for comment yesterday.
