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An employee wasn't "taken by surprise" when told he'd failed a performance review, a commission has ruled, finding his deficiencies were "well documented" and his employer's processes were reasonable.

The NSW Police Force probationary constable sought workers' compensation for an adjustment disorder that he alleged was caused by his supervisor's "constant criticism", bullying and harassment, but the employer denied liability on the basis his injury was caused by reasonable action taken with respect to performance appraisal.

The employee told the NSW Personal Injury Commission the supervisor made "frequent derogatory statements" towards him, such as "you're an idiot, you can't speak English", "you can't spell", "you can't write", and "you can't do this job".

He also claimed the supervisor subjected him to "prolonged meetings" where he would be "berated for up to 50 minutes at a time", which made him feel humiliated and embarrassed...