A Jehovah's Witness's ineptitude and expectation he should be treated "deferentially" at work, rather than any religious discrimination, resulted in his dismissal from a labouring job after seven weeks, a court has found.
A major gas supplier has been ordered to reinstate a left-handed worker whose primary duties involved lifting five-kilogram cylinders, after basing his dismissal on an assessment that right shoulder and neck pain meant he could lift no more than 20kgs.
In a decision clarifying how the FWC deals with unresolved matters in which the applicant has died, the tribunal has wound up a 20-month-old unfair dismissal case after determining that only executors of a claimant's estate can discontinue it.
A tribunal has upheld the dismissal of a marijuana-smoking prison officer, while noting the potential for "mischief" in the suggestion that her proclivity could produce an unconscious bias in assessing inmates.
The FWC, in contrasting redundancy decisions delivered on the same day, has agreed to slash the payment a small, pandemic-affected business must make to a worker, but has rejected another employer's bid to do the same for three of its former employees.
A court has given a publicly-listed veterinary pharmaceutical company the go-ahead to pursue its former chief executive for a significant portion of more than US$400,000 paid to settle assault and s-x discrimination cases brought by two members of its marketing team.
The FWC has upheld the sacking of a veteran Qantas engineer who slapped a flight attendant on the bottom and said he caused a mechanical issue so he could ask her out, rejecting his claim assault allegations should have required a higher burden of proof.
In the first significant pandemic-related dispute over mass lay-offs to come before the FWC, the Federal Court's transcription service provider has been criticised for making "hollow" consultation promises and reminded to treat workers "with dignity in this time of crisis".
A permanent security guard who believed his resignation letter made it clear that he was switching to casual employment has failed to establish that he was unfairly sacked.