A major IT company had a valid reason to sack a project manager who wrongly claimed overnight expenses on 141 occasions over less than 12 months, but his dismissal was unfair given his long and otherwise unblemished service and the long delay in investigating the misconduct, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
A Fair Work Commission member's failure to alert an aged care operator during an unfair dismissal hearing that she might reinstate a nurse to a different operational area represented a denial of natural justice, a full bench has found.
Allowing a late unfair dismissal application because of representative error is less likely to occur where the agent is not professionally qualified, a Fair Work Commission appeal bench has ruled.
A leading barrister has looked ahead at issues - including damages in dismissal cases - likely to arise if the High Court confirms the existence of an implied term of mutual trust and confidence in Australian employment law.
A pest control company that sacked a bookings officer for initially refusing to disclose whether her partner had gone to work for a rival business was entitled to seek such information, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
A company's requirement for an employee to work additional unpaid hours and make himself available on-call was neither lawful nor reasonable, the Fair Work Commission has ruled in upholding his unfair dismissal claim.
A motor mechanic who misled his employer about his trade qualifications in a job interview had destroyed the trust and confidence in the employment relationship, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
Allowing a worker to switch from pursuing an unfair dismissal to a general protections claim after unsuccessful conciliation would allow him "two bites of the cherry", the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
A fly-in, fly-out worker who made bullying and intimidation complaints but then refused to comply with his employer's instructions or grievance process has lost his unfair dismissal claim.
A new report from a major employment law firm predicts that the Senate will pass the Abbott Government's Fair Work Act and building industry amendments, suggests the next reforms will be limits on industrial action and productivity requirements for enterprise agreements, and highlights the lower than expected activity in the FWC's anti-bullying jurisdiction.