The context of "humorous" communications between employees who were friends outside of work was crucial in determining whether some comments were unlawful discrimination, the Federal Circuit Court has noted.
A court has awarded an employer $270k in damages after two of its employees left to establish their own business, in breach of their 12-month contractual restraints.
An employer must pay workers' compensation for a psychological injury, even though its former employee didn't show signs of mental ill health while she was working, was facing multiple stressors in her personal life, and lodged her claim outside the required timeframe.
"Anomalies" in an employer's management of performance and conduct issues meant the process lacked clarity and resulted in a dismissal that was valid, but harsh, the Fair Work Commission has found.
Frustrated by his workload, an employee quit "impulsively and under some pressure", but confirming his intentions an hour later meant the employer was entitled to treat his resignation as "unambiguous", the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
Some risk is unavoidable when engaging contingent workers, but certain steps can go a long way towards preventing regulator scrutiny and entitlement claims, a lawyer says.
A performance improvement plan gave an employee "ample" opportunity to demonstrate better workplace communication, but she "missed it by a mile", a commission has ruled in upholding her dismissal.
Requesting medical information about an absent employee was lawful and reasonable under his contract, and his refusal to grant access warranted summary dismissal, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
An employee, who asked to reduce her hours when returning from parental leave, did not effectively resign when she indicated that she wouldn't return to a full-time position, the Fair Work Commission has found.
General protections claims are the fastest-growing category of applications in the Fair Work Commission, with reforms now underway to stem the tide. This webinar will discuss important developments in both procedural issues and case law.
