The FWC has upheld the sacking of a worker for telling a colleague during an argument that "I'll f-ck you in the a-se", finding that the choice of words went "far beyond" simply swearing in the workplace and constituted s-xual harassment.
In a close analysis of what constitutes regular and systematic employment, a senior FWC member has held that a casual trolley collector met the minimum service period to allow him to pursue Bunnings for unfair dismissal, despite "unpredictable" shifts and a contract expressly stating he should not expect ongoing work or guaranteed hours.
In a case expanding the circumstances under which the FWC will not publish a finding, the tribunal has rejected union arguments that it should release its decision so as to potentially "clear the name" of a former BHP worker who committed suicide after hearings into his unfair dismissal claim were completed.
An employer has failed to establish that it genuinely made a software engineer redundant, in part because it should have offered her a lower-paying job available at a related entity in India.
A criminal lawyer with an "ostrich-like" attitude has failed to convince a judge to reconsider a default judgment ordering him to pay two former employees penalties, costs, long service leave and super totalling more than $70,000.
In a decision closely examining when employees can be directed to perform extra duties, a FWC full bench has ruled that a maintenance worker could refuse to remotely monitor an automated gate at a gas supplier's facility.
The FWC has refused to throw out an allegedly out-of-time adverse action case, ruling a FIFO worker only learned he had been sacked when told he had been left off the list of passengers due to board a plane to the worksite.
In a decision shedding further light on whether workers should be paid if instructed to conduct COVID-19 rapid antigen tests at home or prior to a shift, the FWC has held an aged care agreement lacks any provision to pay staff for testing at a time of their choosing.
The FWC has reinstituted a CFMMEU official's entry rights after more than five years, accepting that he had put his history of foul-mouthed contraventions behind him since being elected to a leadership role and making "lifestyle" changes to reduce stress.
