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An employer had reasonable business grounds to refuse an employee's flexible work request, given her customer service work couldn't be performed from home or "behind locked doors", the Fair Work Commission has found.

Neither the employee's requested Sunday start time (before the business opened to the public) nor her proposal to work a portion of her shift from home aligned with her role as a visitor services officer, Deputy President Kamal Farouque said.

The employee had worked at the Greater Shepparton City Council's visitor centre on a three-day roster since 2019, on successive 12-month flexible working arrangements, approved on the basis of her caring responsibilities for an aging parent.

In 2021 this arrangement was made permanent, and she worked 21 hours and 45 minutes per week, across Monday, Tuesday and Sunday...