The PIAA Board has yet to respond to a letter sent by furious PIAA members giving the Board until Friday to accede to a set of demands, making it likely a Special General Meeting will go ahead with members to vote on a no confidence motion in the Board. Australian Printer has contacted the remaining six board members but all declined to comment on what action the PIAA would be taking. However a source close to the Board has confirmed it will not be responding to the letter before the Friday deadline given by members, partly because the board members don’t have time. Australian Printer understands the Board is taking a dim view of the two day deadline, and believes the letter has factual inaccuracies. Given the Board’s lack of response, it appears likely the SGM will go ahead. An SGM was called for last week, but it was then postponed in the wake of David Leach’s resignation as president. The meeting will be the first in the PIAA’s 170 year history, and it remains to be seen if the meeting will even appease members’ frustrations. The practicalities of the meeting including where it is held, how members would attend, and who will chair the meeting also remain unclear.
Ignored: CEO Jason Allen (right) and the Board are unlikely to respond to Tom Eckersley’s demand letter
The letter, signed by Tom Eckersley from Print Approach in Queensland, was sent to the Board outlining a list of demands for the Board to meet by this Friday. The letter warns if the demands are not met, members would call a SGM, the letter has more than 50 signatories as required. The specific set of demands for the Board include the immediate departure of CEO Jason Allen – who is set to leave April 1, the re-employment of dismissed Queensland PIAA staff member Mel Ireland, and the reinstatement former SA state manager Peter Mansfield and former Victorian state manager Ron Patterson, all on the same pay as when they were dismissed. Members have also demanded a new system of at least two printers from each state to be on the Board and specify that the Board members to replace the vacancies left by the resignations of David Leach, Susan Heaney and Stephen Edwards will be decided by members in their States, rather than the board. The PIAA has faced an escalating crisis since Susan Heaney’s shock resignation two months ago, followed by CEO Jason Allen – who has only served in the role for 6 months, then David Leach’s departure following a raft of abusive phone calls and emails. Stephen Edwards also announced his resignation earlier in the week. Along with the large number of staff departures, members have expressed a number of their concerns with the Board and PIAA over the past few weeks including a perceived lack of communication in regards to the much hyped three year strategic plan, and the sale of a major asset, the national HQ in Auburn.
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