In a reminder of the need for employers to strictly follow disciplinary procedures, the FWC has ordered a hospital pay more than $30,000 to a former security guard unfairly sacked over his treatment of an absconding mental health patient.
A tribunal member failed to properly regard the disputed date of an embassy employee's dismissal in refusing to allow him to proceed with a general protections claim, an FWC full bench has found.
The FWC has upheld a cattle station's sacking of a director for serious misconduct, finding he paid himself unauthorised leave and failed to inform the elderly business owners of escalating legal fees of more than $1 million.
The FWC has in accepting a worker's late unfair dismissal application overlooked her failure to include her former employer in emails seeking numerous time extensions, finding it balanced by her willingness to "engage" with the Commission in pursuing the matter.
A former top bank executive who purportedly resisted efforts to involve him in a management buy-out of a prominent property business is now chasing substantial compensation through the courts, claiming he was summarily dismissed for alleged misconduct just days after making his case for exit payments.
A bottle shop attendant told by her manager that she would not be able to work in a bar while pregnant because it was "a bad look" has been awarded almost $40,000 in compensation and penalties, a court finding there was "no doubt" the employer breached adverse action provisions.
An academic found to have been unlawfully dismissed by James Cook University over criticisms of prominent climate research has been awarded more than $1.2 million, the presiding judge excoriating the institution over its "egregious abuse of power" and public statements intended to "sow doubt" about his findings.
Two excavator operators who allegedly belittled trainees with "foul tirades" that left them so shaken one walked off the job have won compensation, the FWC finding their dismissal was procedurally unfair.
A senior FWC member has cautioned companies against sending dismissal decisions "up the line" without revealing the final signatory's name, observing such opacity could influence whether the process is found to be fair.
The Federal Court has upheld a lawyer's dismissal after he strongly criticised clients of his firm in a newspaper opinion piece, the judge finding his contract "expressly" stipulated both parties could terminate the relationship without cause on three months' notice.
