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An employer isn't liable to compensate an employee who suffered a psychological injury after being informed of an "inappropriate behaviour" complaint against him, a tribunal has affirmed.

There was nothing unreasonable about the supervisor's emails regarding the complaint, Administrative Review Tribunal Senior Member David Thomae found, and although the employee was distressed by investigation delays after that point, there was no evidence to suggest his injury was aggravated, so it wasn't relevant to consider whether the process was reasonable.

The Department of Defence technical and experimentation officer had sought workers' compensation for a "psychosocial injury causing anxiety, headache, insomnia and disruption of interpersonal relationships", which he alleged was caused by an investigation into sexual harassment allegations against him.

Comcare denied liability for the injury, maintaining it was caused by reasonable administrative action taken in a reasonable manner, and affirmed this position after the employee sought a reconsideration. The employee then applied to the Tribunal for a review...