Despite allegations of bullying, the parliamentary clerk for the Northern Territory was unaware that a staff member was experiencing "ongoing" PTSD claims.

Michael Tatham, the parliamentary clerk for the Northern Territory, admitted in a local court in Darwin that he told Ben Harris, a former NT sergeant-at-arms, that he was "playing me for a fool" when Harris explained that two days of sick leave were related to his post-traumatic stress disorder. Tatham said he told Harris that he was "playing me for a fool."

Mr. Harris, a former member of the Australian Defense Force who served in Afghanistan, is suing the Department of Legislative Assembly (DLA) for lost income and medical expenses after claiming that he was inappropriately suspended, demoted, and bullied by Mr. Tatham. Mr. Harris is seeking compensation for both of these losses.

Mr. Tatham testified on Thursday before the court that he had in fact uttered the phrase in question, but that his words had been misconstrued and taken out of context.

He responded by saying, "What I was telling him was that you're playing me for a fool, and I need you to help me help you." "What I was saying to him was..."

In the course of the cross-examination, Miles Crawley SC posed the question to Mr. Tatham, asking how it was helpful to Mr. Harris for him to make a comment like that.

According to Mr. Tatham, the "fool" line was in reference to the fact that Mr. Harris did not show up for meetings for two consecutive days in January of 2016.

Mr. Tatham explained his reaction by saying, "My absence from the workplace prompted my reaction."

"Was it possible that you were trying to tell him that you didn't believe what he said [about the PTSD]?"

Mr Crawley asked.

The response from Mr. Tatham was "No."

"Not aware" of ongoing mental health issues, according to the clerk

After Mr. Harris informed Mr. Tatham in November 2014 that he had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and depression, the court heard that Mr. Tatham did not seek any outside advice or training on how to deal with employees who were suffering from mental health issues.

Mr. Tatham stated that he was aware of Mr. Harris's diagnosis, but that he did not consider it to be a factor in what he referred to as a decline in performance throughout the year 2015.

He said, "I was aware he told me something in 2014 — he seemed to be perfectly fine." "I was aware he told me something in 2014."

"I was unaware that there were ongoing concerns regarding their mental health.

I didn't give it much thought; in fact, it's possible that I didn't give it any thought at all. "I didn't contemplate it in any great detail that he suffered from mental illness."

According to him, the reason for this was that he did not receive any "formal" documentation from Mr. Harris about his condition in 2014. Mr. Harris maintains that he did provide information sheets about PTSD and depression, as well as a list of the side effects of the medication he was taking at the time.

Later on in his testimony, Mr. Tatham stated that he did believe Mr. Harris suffered from PTSD and that he had attempted to assist him by holding regular meetings to "discuss things." However, Mr. Tatham did not keep notes of these meetings.

The court was informed on Wednesday that parliamentary Speaker Kezia Purick had ordered workplace investigator Tony Langmair to investigate Mr. Harris's bullying claims against Mr. Tatham. Mr. Langmair came to the conclusion that the spinal injury claims were unsubstantiated after conducting the investigation.

On Tuesday, the court, however, heard from two mental health experts who expressed concern that Mr. Harris's mental health would deteriorate if he was forced to work with Mr. Tatham on a daily basis. These experts testified in front of the court.

They were both of the opinion that he should be transferred to another department.

Mr. Tatham has stated that he did not obstruct a previous departmental transfer for Mr. Harris, who now works for the Northern Territory Police Fire and Emergency Services.

Mr. Crawley inquired about the possibility of the DLA re-hiring Mr. Harris for the position of sergeant-at-arms while he was still technically serving in that capacity.

According to Mr. Tatham, Ms. Purick gave the order to re-hire the position, which resulted in the position being offered to a former candidate for the NSW Liberal Party in the beginning of 2017.

"Is he a long-time companion of yours?"

Mr Crawley asked.

Mr. Tatham responded, "No," and went on to say that he would not "classify him as a friend."

He claimed that their first encounter took place in either 2014 or 2015 at a parliamentary conference in Tasmania. At the time, Mr. O'Connor was working in the Office of the Speaker for the Legislative Assembly of that state.

Mr. Tatham stated that he did not remember whether or not he presided over the interview committee that chose Mr. O'Connor for the position.

The trial is still going on.

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