(DAN WALTON / iNFOnews.ca)

The union representing staff at the District of Peachland wanted $40,000 after the municipality accidentally published the name of a former employee it had fired and paid off.

According to a Jan. 6 Labour Arbitration Awards decision, CUPE Local 608 claimed publishing the employee's name – which was buried in the depths of an online report – caused the former staffer "immense humiliation" and the District should pay $40,000 in damages.

The decision says the staff member was terminated in early 2023 and the Union then went to bat for them.

Ultimately, the staffer settled with the District of Peachland and received a $40,000 settlement. The terms of the settlement were to be kept confidential.

However, a year later when the District of Peachland was putting together its annual report of expenses, it listed the $40,000 payment to the former staffer under the heading "Schedule of Payments to Suppliers of Goods and Services... 2023."

It was one of 44 line items in the report attached to the District of Peachland's council agenda and posted online.

A week later the Union contacted the District and said publishing the name breached the confidentiality agreement.

The District replied and said it thought it had to be included, but then after speaking to its lawyer said it would remove the name right away.

"The District regrets this inadvertent mistake has taken place and will amend the SOFI report to remove the information," the decision read.

By the following day, the name had been removed from the report.

However, while the former employee's name only appeared in a report attached to an online council agenda, the Union argued disclosing the information had caused the former staffer and his family "immense humiliation and frustration."

"The termination initially caused humiliation and stress. Then less than one year after signing the agreement, the information was published on a public website which has caused "him and his family embarrassment and confusion," CUPE Local 608 argued.

It appears the District of Peachland council agendas are popular reads, as the Union argued that people had not only questioned the former staffer about the $40,000 but also his wife and mother.

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"It has put the entire family in a difficult position as they remain bound by the confidentiality agreement," the decision read. "This breach has reopened the wounds that (the staffer) experienced when he was first terminated. It has caused a considerable setback to the point that it has affected his ability to focus at work. He finds himself shutting down and not enjoying the camaraderie of his co-workers at his new workplace like he once did."

In an ironic twist, the Union's legal challenge for $40,000 compensation led to a Labour Arbitration Award decision being published that now names the former staffer.

In its defence, the District of Peachland said publishing his name was a minor error which did inadvertently and was quickly changed.

"The mistake was not done maliciously, intentionally or deliberately," the District argued.

And the Arbitrator agreed.

The Arbitrator said there was nothing in the report to connect the staffer with the settlement agreement and it was published almost a year after the two sides settled.

The decision said the District of Peachland amended its records to show the employee resigned and was not fired and gave him a letter of reference.

"There is no doubt that the breach was inadvertent, not intended, not premeditated and not deliberate," the Arbitrator said. "It was remedied in a timely manner."

Ultimately, the Arbitrator told the District of Peachland not to do it again but refused any financial compensation.

Read the full decision here.

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