Stress that stemmed from a toxic workplace culture and sub-optimal return-to-work management was the primary cause of an employee's death, a coronial investigation has found.
An employee who was "hypersensitive" to workplace gossip and criticism has won compensation for a psychological injury, after a commission found a procedurally unfair misconduct investigation was its predominant cause.
Sacking an employee for failing to disclose a "very serious injury" did not cause his "downhill spiral" into dr-g use, a tribunal has ruled in a workers' compensation dispute.
The seven-figure damages award arising from a mishandled termination process serves as an extra reminder for employers to consider the interplay between employment contracts and company policies and procedures, a workplace lawyer says.
A tribunal has upheld an appeal by an employee who sustained a psychological injury after being falsely accused of misconduct, in a ruling that shows employers can't just refer to their third-party contracts when relying on a reasonable action defence.
It "defies belief" that an employer would defend a consultation process as "best practice", when it involved informing a manager of his termination during an impromptu coffee meeting in a busy street, according to a tribunal.
An attempt to block access to mental health records in a dispute about an employee's physical condition has failed, with a Tribunal refusing to "divorce" the two issues.
When informing a director she was being investigated for breaching a code of conduct, an employer failed to take into account her experience of family and domestic violence, and its approach caused her to suffer a psychological injury, a tribunal has ruled.
In finding today that the risk of an employee's psychiatric injury was a "serious possibility" after his botched dismissal process, the High Court has nonetheless determined not to rule on whether employers' duty of care extends to disciplinary and termination events.
The High Court has restored a $1.44 million damages award to an employee who had a "catastrophic" reaction to his misconduct dismissal, with the majority ruling that when the employer didn't follow its disciplinary policy, it breached the worker's contract.
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.
