Remember earning every opportunity? Some just text their way to $100k roles now
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Trust in government processes relies on fairness, integrity, and transparency—especially when it comes to hiring decisions.
But a recent investigation has uncovered troubling behaviour within a federal department that casts doubt on whether those principles were upheld.
What unfolded behind the scenes has now led to a serious finding of misconduct involving a senior public official.
A senior Home Affairs official found herself at the centre of a serious corruption finding—one that exposed a disturbing misuse of public power and raised fresh concerns about how jobs are handed out inside government departments.
The official, known by the pseudonym Joanne Simeson, was the subject of a National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) investigation that uncovered a string of questionable decisions, covert text messages, and blatant abuse of authority that ultimately benefited her sister’s fiancé.
The NACC released its report on Monday, detailing events that unfolded between 2022 and 2024.
At the heart of it all was a $101,264-a-year role as an international engagement officer, which ended up being filled by Melissa’s fiancé, Mark Elbert—with Joanne secretly pulling the strings every step of the way.
Joanne’s manipulation started before the hiring process even began. She created the recruitment requisition, appointed herself as the delegate approver, and actively promoted Elbert’s credentials to colleagues within the department.
But that wasn’t all.
According to the commission, Joanne also forged a witness signature on a form during onboarding, and later justified hiding her connection to Elbert by saying she ‘did not want the relationship to be known at work’. However, the NACC found this was no mere oversight—it was a calculated effort to misuse her authority for the benefit of her sister and Elbert.
Evidence presented in the report included a trove of messages exchanged over social media between Joanne and her sister Melissa. In one exchange, dated December 2022, Joanne assured Melissa that she would ‘talk [Mark] through the lie (that they did not have a close personal relationship)’. Melissa responded: ‘he’s so bad at lying he’s too honest’.
The misconduct didn’t end with Elbert’s hiring.
Joanne was also found to have helped Melissa directly. She provided her sister with official interview questions for another job application within the same department—an act the NACC described as a clear misuse of official information.
The report described Joanne’s actions as a ‘serious abuse of her office as a public official’. It noted that she repeatedly misled others about her relationship with Elbert and the benefit conferred upon him.
Although Joanne was stood down in February 2024 and resigned from her position in June 2024, the NACC stated that had she still been employed, it would have recommended her dismissal.
Beyond this individual case, the commission used the opportunity to issue a wider warning. It stressed that ‘nepotism, cronyism and undeclared conflicts of interest in recruitment and promotion is an area of widespread concern’, and that such behaviour ‘undermines the merit selection process and erodes morale’.
It added that favouritism—whether towards friends or business associates—was a ‘systemic’ issue and one of the ‘most commonly observed types of corrupt conduct’, according to the 2024 Commonwealth Integrity Survey.
To prevent similar incidents in the future, the NACC made several recommendations. These included restricting access to interview questions to those with a ‘legitimate need to know’, requiring people involved in hiring to declare any personal ties to applicants, and providing targeted training to senior leadership.
It also called for a thorough review of internal hiring procedures at the Department of Home Affairs—particularly those involving staff transfers facilitated by senior officials.
If this story left you shaking your head, wait until you see what surfaced in Queensland—same issue, different faces.
Take a look and tell us if you’ve seen this sort of thing before.
Source: Youtube/ABC News (Australia)
With trust in public institutions so important, how would you feel if someone you knew missed out on a job because of behind-the-scenes favouritism? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
In a previous story, we covered Nicole Kidman’s surprising red carpet comments that stirred debate around nepotism in the entertainment industry.
For senior Aussies who’ve seen how connections can open doors—or quietly close them—it’s a topic that hits close to home.
If this latest government hiring scandal caught your attention, that one’s worth a look too.
Read more: Nicole Kidman drops nepotism bombshell on red carpet, sparking conversations!
But a recent investigation has uncovered troubling behaviour within a federal department that casts doubt on whether those principles were upheld.
What unfolded behind the scenes has now led to a serious finding of misconduct involving a senior public official.
A senior Home Affairs official found herself at the centre of a serious corruption finding—one that exposed a disturbing misuse of public power and raised fresh concerns about how jobs are handed out inside government departments.
The official, known by the pseudonym Joanne Simeson, was the subject of a National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) investigation that uncovered a string of questionable decisions, covert text messages, and blatant abuse of authority that ultimately benefited her sister’s fiancé.
The NACC released its report on Monday, detailing events that unfolded between 2022 and 2024.
Misuse of power exposed in hiring scandal. Image source: Pexels/Andrea Piacquadio
At the heart of it all was a $101,264-a-year role as an international engagement officer, which ended up being filled by Melissa’s fiancé, Mark Elbert—with Joanne secretly pulling the strings every step of the way.
Joanne’s manipulation started before the hiring process even began. She created the recruitment requisition, appointed herself as the delegate approver, and actively promoted Elbert’s credentials to colleagues within the department.
But that wasn’t all.
According to the commission, Joanne also forged a witness signature on a form during onboarding, and later justified hiding her connection to Elbert by saying she ‘did not want the relationship to be known at work’. However, the NACC found this was no mere oversight—it was a calculated effort to misuse her authority for the benefit of her sister and Elbert.
Evidence presented in the report included a trove of messages exchanged over social media between Joanne and her sister Melissa. In one exchange, dated December 2022, Joanne assured Melissa that she would ‘talk [Mark] through the lie (that they did not have a close personal relationship)’. Melissa responded: ‘he’s so bad at lying he’s too honest’.
The misconduct didn’t end with Elbert’s hiring.
Joanne was also found to have helped Melissa directly. She provided her sister with official interview questions for another job application within the same department—an act the NACC described as a clear misuse of official information.
The report described Joanne’s actions as a ‘serious abuse of her office as a public official’. It noted that she repeatedly misled others about her relationship with Elbert and the benefit conferred upon him.
Although Joanne was stood down in February 2024 and resigned from her position in June 2024, the NACC stated that had she still been employed, it would have recommended her dismissal.
Beyond this individual case, the commission used the opportunity to issue a wider warning. It stressed that ‘nepotism, cronyism and undeclared conflicts of interest in recruitment and promotion is an area of widespread concern’, and that such behaviour ‘undermines the merit selection process and erodes morale’.
It added that favouritism—whether towards friends or business associates—was a ‘systemic’ issue and one of the ‘most commonly observed types of corrupt conduct’, according to the 2024 Commonwealth Integrity Survey.
To prevent similar incidents in the future, the NACC made several recommendations. These included restricting access to interview questions to those with a ‘legitimate need to know’, requiring people involved in hiring to declare any personal ties to applicants, and providing targeted training to senior leadership.
It also called for a thorough review of internal hiring procedures at the Department of Home Affairs—particularly those involving staff transfers facilitated by senior officials.
If this story left you shaking your head, wait until you see what surfaced in Queensland—same issue, different faces.
Take a look and tell us if you’ve seen this sort of thing before.
Source: Youtube/ABC News (Australia)
With trust in public institutions so important, how would you feel if someone you knew missed out on a job because of behind-the-scenes favouritism? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
In a previous story, we covered Nicole Kidman’s surprising red carpet comments that stirred debate around nepotism in the entertainment industry.
For senior Aussies who’ve seen how connections can open doors—or quietly close them—it’s a topic that hits close to home.
If this latest government hiring scandal caught your attention, that one’s worth a look too.
Read more: Nicole Kidman drops nepotism bombshell on red carpet, sparking conversations!
