A FWC presidential member has likened the Fair Work Act's unfair deactivation provisions to a 1993 movie that is a popular culture symbol of endless, pointless repetition, saying the excessively complex laws clash with the statutory mandate for the tribunal to perform its functions in a manner that is "quick, informal and avoids unnecessary technicalities".
The FWC has found Sydney Trains does not have to fund devices used to treat employees' sleep apnoea, but has suggested a review of arrangements with the employer's external health assessors after workers diagnosed with the condition had to pay up to $4000 for the anti-snoring technology.
The FWC has ruled that while a BHP subsidiary "imposed unreasonable deadlines" for a worker with bipolar to respond to and provide medical reports, it was entitled to dismiss him for incapacity after he refused to attend a "tie-breaker" medical exam to resolve conflicting assessments of his fitness for work.
The FWC has upheld Uber's deactivation of a driver accused of s-xual misconduct, despite expressing "significant concerns" about the company's failure to follow up with the rider whose complaint underpinned its decision.
A full Federal Court has found Metro Trains Melbourne discharged its reverse onus in an adverse action case despite its failure to call a workplace relations head and practising lawyer it approached for "IR advice" in the lead-up to a senior manager's sacking.
A worker punching his colleague after their workplace Christmas party warranted his summary dismissal despite it occurring out of hours, the FWC has ruled.
A tribunal has upheld the suspension without pay of a nurse accused of s-xually assaulting a co-worker in their shared employer-provided accommodation, despite his claims it would be unfair when the allegations are "utterly untested".
The FWC has ordered the reinstatement of a worker sacked while on remand as he faced stalking and domestic violence charges, finding his employer's reliance on the criminal allegations "premature" and "unjust".
The FWC has backed Amazon's sacking of an injured worker who refused to have an independent medical examination, while another employer's income protection policy has weighed in favour of finding it not unfair to dismiss an incapacitated diesel fitter.
A worker's conviction for a s-xual offence against a child he committed as a 16-year-old will be made public and exposed to his employer, after he failed in a court bid to have the matter treated as "spent".
