Occupational violence and aggression is now the fastest-growing mechanism of psychological injury, and it's a problem affecting an increasingly broader spectrum of workplaces, a specialist warns.
Placing a collection of rubber ducks and a pentagram on a coworker's desk may have been unwise, but it wasn't malicious, the Fair Work Commission has found in unfair dismissal proceedings.
Employers are now firmly on notice that when they're considering a major workplace change, they need to assess the risk of psychosocial hazards potentially arising from it, a lawyer says.
A court has thrown out a novel adverse action claim, in which an employee argued he was refused a job on the basis of a physical disability, while also denying that he had such a disability.
The Federal Court has rejected both the "bland explanation" an employee received for his dismissal and his employer's later argument that he was underperforming, finding instead that he was sacked for exercising a workplace right.
The HR jobs market dipped at the end of 2025, but according to specialist recruiters, a rise in the proportion of permanent positions advertised signals "strategic maturity" in how employers approach hiring for this function.
The evidence submitted to back up a misconduct dismissal went no further than "undated letters that made vague references to concerns", which an employer appeared to have accepted "at face value", the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
It was unfair to sack an employee who didn't immediately provide evidence to support her bereavement leave request, the Fair Work Commission has ruled, in chastising an employer for its unreasonable response to a traumatic situation.
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.
