An employee's failure to notify his ongoing absence after annual leave was a valid reason to dismiss him, but the employer's informal management approach and lack of procedural fairness warranted his reinstatement, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
It was appropriate for an employer to seek detailed medical clearance after a worker's lengthy mental health absence, the Fair Work Commission has noted, in rejecting that he was constructively dismissed.
The Fair Work Commission had no jurisdiction to consider whether FDV experienced while working from home meant an employee had suffered a workplace injury, it has noted in concluding her dismissal after a 15-month absence wasn't unfair.
Frustration of an employment contract in circumstances of illness or injury "is a difficult concept to establish", a Fair Work Commissioner has noted, in clearing a worker to pursue his unfair dismissal claim.
An employee who had been absent for more than two years before resigning has failed to convince the Fair Work Commission he was forced out by a pattern of "sustained psychological abuse, structural mismanagement [and] coercion".
A "very poor" attendance rate combined with repeatedly failing to notify or explain absences meant there were valid reasons to sack an employee, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
An unexplained absence from work constituted abandonment of employment even though the employee was experiencing "extreme" mental health issues, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
It was retaliatory and "cold-hearted" of an HR manager to ask an absent employee to attend meetings, and to repeatedly deny his requests for annual leave after his sick leave ran out, the Federal Circuit Court has found in upholding his adverse action claim.
After being on restricted duties for nearly seven years, an employee who claimed she might be fit to perform her pre-injury role "at some time in the future" has lost her unfair dismissal claim.
Dismissing an employee by text, without warning and without a valid reason, was "inappropriate and regrettable", the Fair Work Commission has found in ordering compensation.
Some employers have successfully stepped up to the task of managing psychosocial safety, but in many other workplaces, initiatives are falling flat. Join us for an HR Daily webinar to understand what's holding back progress in this critical space and how to move forward.
