Victoria, Australia’s workers’ compensation authority is in court seeking $300,000 in remuneration from Crown Resorts majority shareholder James Packer. WorkCover paid more than $326,000 in compensation and medical costs to a onetime Crown staffer who claimed he was assaulted by the billionaire.
According to the Australian Age, the incident took place on New Year’s Day in 2016. The employee, Iskandar Chaban, alleges that Packer became verbally abusive and threatening, pushed him and threatened to “throw him out of his job.”
Chaban says he didn’t recognize Crown’s longtime executive chairman as he approached the main gaming floor at Crown Towers Melbourne with senior colleague Ishan Ratnam. He said Packer seemed to be intoxicated.
Chaban furthermore claims that he “was subsequently escorted to an office where the management staff verbally abused, humiliated, intimidated, and bullied the worker.” The 60-year-old was later taken to a hospital with reported neck and back injuries.
A lawyer for the plaintiff said, “Our client’s life has been devastated by the events that transpired. Such conduct is unacceptable and must be addressed.”
Crown dismissed the incident as “minor” and a “misunderstanding.”
