Covertly applying for a job with an employer's client didn't breach an employee's contractual restraint, but it was nonetheless misconduct that warranted her dismissal, the Fair Work Commission has found.
Engaging an external contractor didn't undermine an employer's genuine redundancy defence to an unfair dismissal claim, the Fair Work Commission has found, rejecting there were any signs of a "sham".
Ernst & Young has defended terminating a senior partner who was charged with assault after hours spent drinking with staff and clients, on the basis his conduct was likely to harm the firm's interests.
One of the biggest lessons so far from the Fair Work Commission's arbitration of flexible work disputes is that employers must engage in meaningful dialogue with workers who are seeking new arrangements, a lawyer says.
An employee has been chastised for "grasping at excuses for his unacceptable conduct", with the Fair Work Commission accepting he posed a "serious and imminent risk" to workplace health and safety and was fairly sacked.
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.
Relying on complaints from seven years ago was "misconceived", the Fair Work Commission has ruled, in finding a worker accused of sexual misconduct should be reinstated.
The reverse onus of proof in adverse action cases shouldn't be a "free kick" for employees to name numerous decision-makers without properly identifying their role in alleged contraventions, an employer has argued.
Private workplace messages may well have been "venting", but in body-shaming a manager and encouraging gendered violence they were also inappropriate and warranted discipline, a commission has ruled.
An employee has convinced the Fair Work Commission to order an exception to her employer's hybrid working policy, because after moving further away from its office and enrolling her children in a more distant school, she required a fully remote working arrangement to manage pick-ups and drop-offs.
Workplace bullying complaints continue to pose significant challenges for employers, including where the behaviour doesn't meet the legal definition of bullying or the threshold to make a claim. Watch this HR Daily Premium webcast to understand key lessons from cases where bullying complaints interact with other claims and issues.
What constitutes "best practice" when managing neurodiversity at work is evolving all the time. Watch this HR Daily Premium webcast to learn how to embed neuroinclusive practices into HR programs and every stage of the employment lifecycle.
