Nine held secret investigation into Liz Hayes’ bullying claims

Nathan Jolly

September 15, 2025 11:51

Liz Hayes allegedly made complaints against long-running 60 Minutes executive producer Kirsty Thomson

Nine hired an external firm to run an investigation into claims that Liz Hayes and producer Gareth Harvey were bullied by 60 Minutes executive producer Kirsty Thomson.

This is according to the Sunday Telegraph, who revealed that the inquiry was run by Enterprise Investigations last year, at the same time a separate third-party probe into the network’s culture “found concerning levels of inappropriate workplace behaviours at Nine.”

While the scathing Intersection report was publicly released last October, noting “very high prevalence rates of abuse of power or authority” in Nine’s broadcast division, the investigation into Thomson, who has been executive producer of 60 Minutes since 2016, was kept confidential.

The Sunday Telegraph said it “does not suggest that the allegations [against Thomson] were true, just that the complaints were made.”

The article quotes unnamed sources who confirmed both Hayes and Harvey made formal complaints to the network, and conducted interviews with Enterprise Investigations.

The Telegraph story also quotes “several former 60 Minutes employees” who outline examples of Thomson’s alleged behaviour in the workplace.

Nathanael Cooper, the writer of the Telegraph piece, was an employee of Nine Entertainment’s publishing division until August 2022.

Liz Hayes left Nine in February after 44 years at the network, jumping ship to rivals Seven. During an exit interview with the Daily Telegraph, Hayes said Nine “made a very, very good offer” to try and keep her at the network, but she said “I knew that I didn’t want to go back to 60 Minutes.”

A Nine spokesperson sent the following statement to the paper:

“Nine would not, and will not, confirm or deny the existence of a workplace investigation in respect of any employee,” the spokesman said.

“Nine takes incredibly seriously its duties to investigate and address any complaints or concerns about workplace conduct in a manner consistent with best practice.

“It is imperative that Nine protects the confidentiality of the existence, process and outcome of any workplace investigation it commissions or conducts.

“Nine unequivocally stands by Kirsty Thomson, who has held the role of executive producer at 60 Minutes for almost 10 years, and has a proven track record.”

Kirsty Thomson

Last October, Nine’s own masthead, the Australian Financial Review, reported that Nine had hired Enterprise Investigation to follow up some of the claims made against individuals during the Intersection probe.

In a note sent to staff in the days following the release of the report, then-acting-CEO Matt Stanton confirmed the network had additional investigations on the boil.

“We currently have a number of active investigations underway into issues raised by employees, some of which are being led by an external investigator whom we have partnered with,” Stanton wrote.

“No two cases are the same, and I’m sure you can appreciate these investigations need to be conducted in a manner that follows a just and proper process, which can take time.

“This will not be influenced by outside interest or public scrutiny.”

The Intersection report, which doesn’t mention 60 Minutes specifically, notes its findings “paint a picture of an organisation where accountability is lacking, where decisions in the workplace are made based on personal gain or preference, and where an individual’s role or status can be used to bully, harass or to ‘punch down’.

“These practices have created an ecosystem of inequity, where poor performers are not dealt with in real time, if at all; where high performers carry a more significant workload as a result; and where those not perceived to be ‘in favour’ of leadership are allocated undesirable tasks, shifts or working conditions and denied opportunities for career advancement.

“More than half of all employees in the broadcast division also reported experiencing bullying, discrimination or harassment. Experiences of public humiliation, ‘white-anting’, belittling comments or conduct, and aggressive or intimidating behaviour were found to be commonplace and normalised.

“These behaviours are perpetrated by leaders and peers alike and are often not addressed.”