MP Fiona Martin's Office has Lost 15 Staff Since 2019

Apr 29, 20223 min read

Updated: Jul 17, 2022

Fiona Martin is the currently elected Member of Parliament for the seat of Reid in Sydney's inner-west. Despite being the member for Reid, as of the 18th of January 2022, Dr. Martin's residence is listed as being located in East Ryde according to her Register of Members' Interests.

15 Staff Have Left Employment in Fiona Martin's Office Since Elected

On April 7th, 2022, The Australian reported that 15 of Dr. Martin's staff had walked out since she was first elected in May of 2019. 9 of Dr. Martin's 15 former employees had spoken to The Australian, with some accusing Dr. Martin of making "inappropriate comments" and "engaging staff in personal administrative work."

One former employee had described their experience of Dr. Martin's office as "extremely stressful" and noted that Dr. Martin's inappropriate comments included a string of observations about another employees weight. The same employee also reported being "gaslighted," as Dr. Martin questioned her "personal loyalty" and stated that if the employee "didn't support her, she wouldn't run for Reid in the next election." Dr. Martin responded to these allegations:

“If any staff member felt they had a poor experience in my office, then I apologise. I know I can always do better but I am not aware of any complaints."

Dr. Martin went on to state that the high staff turnover was "a reflection of the nature of electoral offices," where staff are often employed on a part-time basis.

Former Babysitter Employed in Tax-Payer Funded $80,000 Role

Many of the former employees who spoke to The Australian also noted that Dr. Martin had employed a former babysitter as her diary manager within the office, a role costing taxpayers on average between $75,000-$80,000 a year, potentially rising to $90,000 with the inclusion of bonuses. One former staff described how it was not hidden from staff that the diary manager was Dr. Martin's former babysitter and that she had no previous experience in politics.

The the former babysitter was employed as a diary manager from June 2019 to November 2019 and her work responsibilities were listed on her LinkedIn profile:

"Juggle Dr Martin's itineraries and travel arrangements for a family of six, plus the family dog, book activities and childcare for four children and oversee the upkeep of multiple family cars and ensure all utility bills were paid on time."

This description of responsibilities has since been removed from the LinkIn Profile.

Aussie Cossack Incident & Complaint of Intimidation

In February 2022, YouTube Personality and resident of Dr. Martin's, the Aussie Cossack (Simon Boikov), was investigated by NSW Police following a complain of alleged intimidation from Dr. Martin. The complaint was made following an interaction between Mr. Boikov and Dr. Martin wherein Mr. Boikov attempted to ask Dr. Martin questions as she got into her car and attempted to drivee away at Cabarita Park. One of Dr. Martin's staffers then called the NSW Police. Dr. Martin was leaving Cabarita Park following a pop-up campaign stall where she had invited her constituents to "Come down and ask me a question!"

The incident was filmed by a colleague of Mr. Boikov and uploaded to his YouTube channel. The video shows Dr. Martin waving her hand from within her vehicle as Mr. Boikov stands near her driver-side window and continued to ask questions. The videe also appears to show at least three police cars and six police in attendance, with one officer claiming they were responding to a report of alleged property damage. Dr. Martin claimed that both Mr. Boikov and his associated blocked her car twice as she attempted to leave and that the incident had prevented her from speaking to other locals due to Mr. Boikov encouraging protesters to attend the event.