Board resignations and staff chaos fuel unrest at the GOCSA AGM
Source: NEOS KOSMOS
Tensions arose at the Greek Orthodox Community of South Australia’s (GOCSA) Annual General Meeting on Sunday, November 30, over issues of governance, staffing chaos, aged-care pressures, and three board resignations.
The meeting unfolded against the backdrop of a year marked by eight senior resignations, internal disputes, and the lingering impact of last year’s failed attempt to initiate a formal reconciliation process with the Archdiocese—an effort led by former president Peter Gardiakos, which secured 60 per cent support but fell short of the constitutionally required 70 per cent threshold.
Neos Kosmos spoke to GOCSA president Peter Ppiros, who succeeded Peter Gardiakos, then Gardiakos, as well as sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Finances
Before addressing the main issues of concern, president Ppiros, summarised the financial report for the year. In a statement provided to media Ppiros “spoke about the activities of the past year and emphasised that the organisation had a financial surplus of $2,116,000 — a robust financial result, with the main contributor being the Greek Community Aged Care Home in Ridleyton.”
A detailed report on the Community’s finances was then presented by the treasurer, Emmanouil Frossinakis.
Questions and concerns
At the AGM concerns were raised by former Community president Gardiakos and many of those concerns were included in a letter dated November 28, containing 13 questions from former Administrative Council member and current SA Multicultural Commissioner Chloe Kourakis.
Some of the questions related to reports published in Greek media stating that General Manager Con Dalagiorgos and Chief Financial Officer Peter Mirasgentis “are on extended leave as a result of workplace psychological issues and stress.”
In the letter, Kourakis asked: “Have the GM and CFO notified GOCSA of those reasons? If so, has GOCSA taken steps to address stressors in the workplace so that they can return to a psychologically safe environment?”
She also asked: “Who is now discharging the duties of the General Manager and Chief Financial Officer respectively, and when did they commence doing so? Have the members been informed of the change in management, the reasons for it, and the effect on services? If so, how and when?”
The president responded by citing “privacy and legal implications” regarding staff matters and continued to avoid any questions of resignations and staff tumult . He did, however, confirm that WorkSafe officers visited the Community offices on October 21 and that “documentation was provided to Safework [sic].”
He added that they had “employed the services of Mr Nick Kyriazopoulos, a past General Manager of GOCSA for 17 years.”
The responses to Kourakis’s letter, provided by GOCSA president Peter Ppiros, were supplied to Neos Kosmos along with a copy of Kourakis’s original letter.
Resignations and internal strain
In a media release following the AGM President Ppiros “expressed his disappointment over the resignations of the three Board members” and acknowledged that “approximately six employees” within the organisation but that it “represents a small proportion of the roughly 250 employees the Community engages”.
The three prominent board members who resigned were former Vice-President Dr Stan Salagaras, Administrative Council member Arthur Flabouris, and Penny Anagnostou. GOCSA’s General Manager, Con Dalagiorgos, and Chief Financial Officer, Peter Mirasgentis, have also taken extended leave citing stress according to Neos Kosmos sources.
Gardiakos speaking to Neos Kosmos said that Ppiros has gone backwards we were going forward now it seems its going and added that his team had brought in “high performing staff” .
“The previous board put in eight high performing staff who were bringing the organisation and its services into line with contemporary practices, ready for 2025. Sadly, what saw now is the exodus of these excellent people due to interference by the board,”Gardiakos said.
Ppiros unmoved simply again said, “These matters are now before Fair Work”, and declined to comment on any staffing issues, citing “legal sensitivities”.
President Ppiros then shifted focus to an “effort to revitalise the Federation of Greek Orthodox Communities of Australia, beginning with the meeting held last May in Adelaide with the participation of the Communities of Sydney, Adelaide, Newcastle and St Albans.”
The Federation thought has been largely dormant, and the most significant Greek Community in Australia, Greek Community of Melbourne did not attend that meeting.
In the media release statement, Ppiros said that “The four participating Communities will continue to operate as the only secular representative body of the Greek communities of Australia. They will continue to cooperate on cultural matters, the teaching of the Greek language, issues relating to Greeks living in Australia, and national issues where Greece and Cyprus require support and solidarity”.
Aged care pressures and scrutiny over duty of care
GOCSA’s former president Gardiakos raised concerns at the AGM over empty beds at GOCSA’s aged-care facility and the resignation of two directors of nursing. Gardiakos speaking to Neos Kosmos said that directors of nursing left due to undue interference from the board.
He told Neos Kosmos that at the AGM he asked Ppiros if the age care facility was compliant with the changes to Age Care Act brought down by the commonwealth government.
“I asked because we have a duty of care, given the Age Care Act, this is serious” said Gardiakos and suggested that Ppiros did not know or understand the issue and “was not aware of the serious implications”.
Gardiakos went to say that Ppiros “deferred the answer to ‘Other Business”.
Ppiros refused to comment on the resignation of two directors and instead pointed to the “larger picture” and said, “multiple factors—such as COVID-era after-effects and staffing model changes—have affected capacity”. He also said the issue impacting aged care were long-standing and that the “issues were there in the previous administration.”
The facility was previously operating at 120 beds, Ppiros said, but declining resident numbers have created pressures on funding, which is tied to occupancy. Asked again by Neos Kosmos if the Community’s aged care services are prepared and inline with for the recent Commonwealth changes to aged care he said, “They have been working on it and continue to”.
Accusations of “leaks” and calls for expulsions
Another flashpoint at the AGM was when board member Hellas Lucas called for recently resigned board members Salagaras and Flabouris to have their memberships revoked for allegedly sharing internal matters with the media.
These former members of the Community have provided comments to media, however, when asked by Neos Kosmos whether there was evidence of leaking, Ppiros said he had not sighted any. However, the president said, that Lukas’s call for revoking their membership was “applauded” at the AGM, and warned that public airing of board matters, “is destabilising and diminishes unity.”
Neos Kosmos pointed to what seemed threadbare unity given that three senior board members resigned, and the staff was in turmoil with accusations and counter accusations of bullying. Neos Kosmos put to the president, that the new team brought in by the GM and CFO all resigned to which president Ppiros again refused to elaborate on staffing matters.
Reconciliation question still looms
The unresolved question of reconciliation with the Archdiocese—an issue that has defined GOCSA’s identity for more than six decades—again hovered like miasma over AGM proceedings even if it was not directly discussed.
Ppiros told Neos Kosmos that while the board and membership could revisit the matter if they wished, he had no intention of reopening last year’s defeated proposal.
“The members spoke,” he said. “As president, I listen to the members.”
He pushed back against what he said was an “obsessive focus” by media on the schism. “There are many other issues facing this community—aged care, staffing, governance, and planning for the future. We must look at the whole picture.”
Future direction: Consultation, but cautious
Ppiros said he intends to initiate broader consultations with members to shape GOCSA’s future vision of the organisation, noting that demographic shifts will significantly change the role and needs of the community.
“The Greek community is not what it was 50 or even 20 years ago, it has altered, in the next few years there will be dramatic changes as the first- and second-generation Greek Australians pass away.”
Asked by Neos Kosmos if he would extend the consultations beyond the membership and consult with other stakeholders such as Greek regional associations, sporting and welfare organisations and of course, the South Australian government, Ppiros said he would. When asked if that included the Archdiocese, Ppiros reverted to saying that he would be “guided by the board and membership”.
When asked whether he would inform the Archdiocese of any forthcoming community consultation process, Ppiros said, “I am a democratic president, I will go to my board first, then to the membership”.
More than 60 years after the split that made South Australia the epicentre of the national schism between community-run and Archdiocesan-run Greek Orthodox institutions, reconciliation remains elusive.
President avoids committing to reconciliation
Neos Kosmos asked Ppiros, as the elected leader of the Community, whether he has any view—or position at all—on the question of reconciliation between Church and Community, given its centrality to the conflicts that have engulfed the Community since last year’s failed attempt at reconciliation.
Ppiros again accused Neos Kosmos and other Greek media of being “obsessed” with what he referred to as “that issue.”
“There are so many other pressing issues that the Greek community must address, and you [Greek media] are all focused on that one issue.”
“I am a democratically elected member, and whatever opinion I may or may not have, I will be guided by the board and our members. I will never take unilateral action. If our members direct us to pursue broader engagement, then yes, we will do that.”
Neos Kosmos asked the Community’s president how he felt about statements made to this masthead last year by SA Minister Tom Koutsantonis, and public statements by the Premier of South Australia, Peter Malinauskas, that the state government would support endeavours toward reconciliation.
He said he has sent a letter asking to meet with Minister Koutsantonis and wants to engage with the South Australian government, adding that he seeks “to foster unity.”
He cautioned that “the history and the complexities of this issue need to be well understood, and that there are many more pressing and important matters to discuss in relation to the Greek community of SA.”
Lingering divisions
While it was clear that Ppiros carries the numbers, for many within the GOCSA and outside, the AGM reinforced what they already knew: the question of unity—within GOCSA, and between GOCSA and the Church—remains far from settled. Given the resignations, and the tensions spilling over in the AGM, as well as the sharper criticisms from former board members, GOCSA Ppiros and his team may have a Back to the Future view of the world.
The original article: belongs to NEOS KOSMOS .
