In a significant decision on FWC powers, a full bench has found the tribunal could not force a labour hire company to reinstate a worker to his former job at client Carlton United Breweries, given the beer giant was contractually entitled to order his removal.
The FWC has upbraided construction company Hansen Yuncken for its "callous" and unfair sacking of a "naïve" trainee who nonetheless provided it with a valid reason by insisting on indefinite unpaid leave to avoid lengthy public transport commutes during COVID-19.
The FWC has upheld the dismissal of a casual on-hire food and beverage attendant who did not accept any shifts while receiving JobKeeper payments that significantly increased his income, noting he lacked an incentive to work.
An FWC full bench has found that a presidential member "Illogically" followed his ruling that a worker might not have been dismissed if fairly treated by calculating he would have worked just three more weeks if afforded due process.
The FWC has over the objections of a self-represented applicant granted ANZ legal representation in an unfair dismissal case, in part because of the former employee's "rudimentary" understanding as to how her case will proceed.
The FWC will hear closing submissions on February 4 in an unfair dismissal case it adjourned until a teenage witness turned 18 and completed his final year exams.
The FWC has upheld an "inept" dismissal bereft of procedural fairness, finding it unlikely to have altered the result for a worker who swore, abused and tried to pick a fight with colleagues while on a warning.
An FWC full bench has clarified the preconditions for employers being granted legal representation, rejecting a presidential member's opinion that jurisdictional questions are inherently complex and dismissing "bare assertions" about an HR team's incapacity to contest a case.
In a case likely to be closely watched by employers considering mandatory coronavirus vaccinations, the FWC will probe whether Ozcare unfairly sacked a long serving care assistant who refused a compulsory flu shot on allergy grounds, while the Commission has also weighed-in on the contentious issue of compulsory jabs for Santas.
