Labor MP Emma Husar has announced that she will not be contesting her seat at the next federal election after facing a number of allegations of workplace bullying and harassment.
According to Buzzfeed Australia, an investigation undertaken by NSW Labor gathered 200,000 words of evidence from over 20 witnesses regarding allegations of “bullying, harassment, verbal abuse, intimidation, and misuse of staff“.
Former members of Husar’s staff have alleged that she asked them to do things outside the scope of their work including babysitting her children both in and outside of work hours, and walking and cleaning up after her dog. Buzzfeed cited an internal email they had seen which advertised a position in her office for a media and policy adviser which involved “supporting various personal, professional and family obligations“.
In an interview with 9 News, Husar said that she still contested the allegations, but that she could not recover from the damage to her reputation. “It is an incredibly sad day for me. I have just derived immense pleasure from being able to represent my community, but enough is enough,” Husar said.
One of the 44 allegations included in the investigation led by barrister John Whelan is that Husar exposed herself to fellow MP Jason Clare while he was playing with his three-year-old son, although both Clare and Husar have denied this.
Husar told 9 News it had been very hard on her family, saying that her kids had been “trolled online” and that the last few weeks had “really pushed them to their limits“.
Husar has said that she still retains the support of Labor leader Bill Shorten: “He’s always backed me, always believed in me, and will continue to believe in me, that won’t change. He knows the person I am, the good that I’ve done.”
According to 9 News, the findings of the internal investigation are expected to be handed in this week.
