A senior employee's "entirely unhelpful and disruptive intervention" in an employer's efforts to trial a four-day work week wasn't serious misconduct that warranted summary dismissal, according to the Fair Work Commission.
A part-time worker trying to claim he was dismissed after exercising his protected right to complain about his pay was a contractor, not an employee, the Federal Circuit Court has found.
A worker claiming she was unfairly dismissed has won an appeal, with the Fair Work Commission finding an earlier ruling that she earned above the high-income threshold was made in error.
An employee's dismissal for aggressive behaviour was "a sham and a disgrace", resulting in a "very serious psychiatric injury", a court has ruled in awarding him more than $1 million in damages.
A "stupid" comment to a young employee wasn't a "threat of fatal violence" but it nonetheless made his work environment feel less safe, and forced him to resign, the Fair Work Commission has found.
It was "completely untenable" for an employee to suggest he'd had a "mind lapse" regarding a clear instruction not to drink alcohol at a work lunch, the Fair Work Commission has found.
An employer's adverse action defence has fallen down over its failure to confirm which HR professional recommended a final warning for an employee's misconduct.
An employee with no imminent prospect of returning to work from medical leave has failed to convince the Fair Work Commission to issue a stop-bullying order.
The Fair Work Commission has dealt with a wide range of topics in unfair dismissal cases this year, from bullying, harassment and other misconduct, to health conditions and vaccinations, but some have "stuck out", employment lawyers say.
