An employer's procedural errors weren't so great as to make a manager's dismissal for drinking while at work unfair, the Fair Work Commission has ruled. Meanwhile, an employee's mass email speculating about job cuts justified his sacking, while another's abusive response to an "overly keen" supervisor also warranted termination.
An employer's dismissal of its most senior manager following employee complaints was "capricious, spiteful and prejudiced", the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
An employer was wrong to sack a manager without warning after his team delivered a JK Rowling book a day early, the Fair Work Commission has found, awarding him $50k in compensation.
The Fair Work Commission has chastised a large employer for dismissing an employee over the phone while she was on sick leave, likening its action to "tossing out a dirty rag".
An employer that made generalised accusations against an employee, despite having video footage of her alleged misconduct, practised a "form of entrapment", the Fair Work Commission has found in ordering her reinstatement.
An employer took unlawful adverse action in dismissing an employee because she was pregnant, a court has found, while two employees have failed to prove workplace complaints were the reason they were sacked.
Evidence of a worker's serious misconduct, no matter how strong, is no guarantee an on-the-spot dismissal will be considered fair in court, according to a lawyer.
Misapprehensions abound about summary dismissals and continue to trip up even the most vigilant employers. Watch this webcast to understand why employees can never be dismissed "on the spot", how to ensure workplace policies support disciplinary action, and more.
The Fair Work Commission has found it was harsh to sack an employee who claimed work incidents caused him to fail a random blood-alcohol test. Meanwhile, an employer criticised for massive procedural fairness failings is appealing an unfair dismissal ruling; a third state is introducing labour hire licensing; and more.
The fact it took an employer two weeks to sack an employee for a confidentiality breach indicated summary dismissal wasn't a reasonable response to his misconduct, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
Costly legal disputes continue to highlight the many risks employers face when managing, disciplining, or dismissing employees while they are absent, injured or incapacitated. Attend this webinar for an up-to-date review of the legal framework applying to workplace absenteeism, injury and incapacity, and lessons from recent case law.
