Australia Post and Christine Holgate have reached a settlement in Holgate’s claims she was unfairly dismissed by the delivery chain, with AusPost agreeing to pay $1 million.

AusPost acknowledged it had lost an effective CEO following the events of last October, when Holgate admitted four sales employees were given $20,000 watches – something she has since clarified was supported by the business – and was subsequently, in her words, bullied into stepping down from her role by the Prime Minster Scott Morrison.

“I was humiliated by our prime minister for committing no offence and then bullied by my own chairman [who] unlawfully stood me down at the public direction of the prime minister,” Holgate said.

Australia Post, in a statement, said it regrets these difficult circumstances, but that it made the payment to Holgate without any admission of liability.

Holgate has released Australia Post from all legal claims, and wished the business and its employees the best.

The Prime Minister has yet to publicly apologise to Holgate for the part he played in her unlawful dismissal despite recommendations from a senate inquiry into the matter, and instead defended his “strong language” which he regrets caused her “distress”.

Moving forward, Holgate will lead Australia Post competitor Global Express.

“It’s a new chapter and I’m really looking forward to it,” Holgate told the ABC in March.

“It has been a challenging [period], but there’s a line in the sand now. There’s a few things we need to do about the past, but now it’s all about looking forward and rebuilding.“