In a case alerting labour hire companies to the dangers of carrying out dismissals at a client's behest, the FWC has opened the way for a casual labour hire mine worker to seek reinstatement after WorkPac took a directive to remove her as "a fait accompli".
A business owner has been hit with a record $125,000 penalty over his company's failure to pay FWC-awarded compensation to an unfairly sacked former employee.
The FWC has criticised an employer for directing a worker to manage her relationship with a "predictably volatile" supervisor, finding she was unfairly dismissed in the wake of a "screaming match" and ordering her reinstatement.
A restaurant that required a chef to work more than 20 unpaid hours a week and summarily sacked him when he sought to pare it back and take leave was "blissfully unaware" of its award obligations, the FWC has found.
In an instructive case on managing conflicts of interest, the FWC has found a money management company had a valid reason to sack a budget specialist who failed to disclose his casino visit to stop a client and friend from blowing his inheritance, but an HR manager's actions rendered it harsh.
In a ruling criticising the practice of diplomats recruiting domestic workers from overseas, the FWC has ordered Iraq's consul-general to pay $20,000 to a Filipina live-in nanny dismissed after raising concerns about her entitlements.
The FWC has described a kennel hand's dismissal as so unfair "even the dogs in the street know" it, putting the labradoodle breeders on notice to take better care of their puppies than they do of the humans they employ.
The FWC on rehearing a yard hand's dismissal application has observed his employer's lack of HR expertise did not wash as an excuse for the "disgraceful and grossly unfair" sacking, but slashed compensation due to his vulgar language and propensity to snap when frustrated.
In a significant decision affecting those in temporary government roles, the FWC has found a Federal department failed to recognise it was dismissing a "non-ongoing" employee when it informed him that repeated instances of disrespectful behaviour meant he would not be offered further work.
