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Frustration with an employee who acted unprofessionally should not have coloured an employer's perception of whether her "disrespectful" comments amounted to a resignation, the Fair Work Commission has found.

The HR services provider had formed a "subjective view" that the employee wanted to quit, but her comments didn't rise to the level of a "clear and unambiguous intention to resign", Deputy President Nicholas Lake said.

The sales coach for Peninsula Australia (formerly Employsure) lodged a general protections dismissal dispute in May this year, but the employer objected on the basis she had resigned.

The Commission heard that following her mother's cancer diagnosis, the employee took periods of personal and annual leave in April. At one point, she asked her manager if she would be paid out her two-month notice period if she left, but nothing came of this...