Civil Aviation Authority review into workplace culture reveals bullying, leadership issues

Whistleblowers spoke of a toxic environment where complaints were mismanaged, and those raising concerns felt “isolated” by managers.

There was also criticism of changes at the agency, with claims the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) was changing from a safety regulator to an agency focused on prosecutions which CAA bosses have strongly denied.

Taylor was engaged by the CAA in September and interviewed 130 staff over several months.

The CAA’s board chairman Mark Darrow said findings of the review would not be made public saying Taylor “got to the nub” of the issues and “assisted greatly in resetting several areas”.

He described the issues as “very localised” and said Taylor helped as an “external coach” for the agency.

“We have now drawn a line under that work and have moved on to more current matters. I might add your focus [the Herald’s] was not unhelpful in creating momentum to address things as needed,” he told the Herald.

Darrow said staff wellbeing remains front of mind as more changes to the CAA’s structure are navigated in the coming months.

He did not elaborate further on the precise nature of the issues identified by Taylor, and the CAA refused to comment at all, referring the Herald to Darrow’s statements.

However, the Herald has been leaked documents presented to staff by Taylor and CAA director Kieth Manch which summarised Taylor’s findings.

She found “change fatigue” had set in at the CAA due to multiple previous organisational changes at the agency.

“This is creating siloed behaviour, and a fear of making mistakes or being able to speak up. There is a strong sense of not being listened to,” the document said.

Taylor’s culture review is not the first at the CAA.

A damning ministerial inquiry report published in 2020 revealed a culture of bullying and harassment likened to an “old boys’ club”. Poor behaviour was allowed to occur due to leadership failures, according to findings released at the time.

In her review, Taylor noted ongoing leadership problems saying there was a “lack of diversity of thought” when it came to the development and recruitment of leaders.

There needed to be “zero tolerance for bad behaviour” and internal communications “need warmth, context and transparency”.

Under the title “psychological safety”, Taylor’s report noted there was a fear of speaking up, a high level of suspicion, and that self-preservation was resulting in “territory grabs, upward bullying and a siege mentality”.

Under the heading “general themes from the people”, the document states:

As part of a plan to move forward, Taylor’s presentation said an organisational culture plan would be co-created by staff and there would be coaching and development work undertaken with key leaders.

CAA leaders before select committee

Last week CAA director Keith Manch and board chairman Mark Darrow spent an hour answering questions from MPs as part of a select committee hearing.

Both leaders acknowledged culture issues at the CAA, referring to them multiple times as “hotspots”.

Manch described the overall culture at the CAA as “pretty good”, and said “developing leadership capability” was a key focus post-Taylor’s review.

The Herald sought additional information about what this entailed from CAA, but the agency declined to comment.

Darrow was less vague during the hearing telling committee members problems had been identified.

“There were culture issues, there were hotspots, we’ve addressed them, brought the coaches in,” Darrow said.

Pressed to elaborate, Darrow acknowledged poor leadership was one of the issues.

“There have been issues of a lack of leadership internally. I think that’s been addressed both directly with Keith with his people, and structurally.”

He said internal pushback about changes to teams at the CAA had “settled down” and he put that, and the leadership problems, down to “poor communication”.

CAA board members were now more engaged with staff and “walk the floor” to talk to employees around the country, he said.

Darrow said “there was more to do” but progress was being made.

CAA director set to retire

Staff have been told CAA director Keith Manch won’t seek reappointment as director and chief executive of the agency when his contract expires in February next year.

A statement sent to staff said all Crown CEOs sign on for a five-year term and Manch would not seek to continue in the role.

“When my contract finishes, I will be 67 years old, having worked 49 years in government, I intend to retire,” Manch said.

The statement said Manch had always indicated his plan was to only complete one term as director of the CAA.

Recruitment for a new chief executive of the CAA, and two other deputy chief executive roles is currently under way.

Michael Morrah is a senior investigative reporter/team leader at the Herald. He won the best coverage of a major news event at the 2024 Voyager NZ Media Awards and has twice been named reporter of the year. He has been a broadcast journalist for 20 years and joined the Herald’s video team in July 2024.