A geoscientist made redundant after almost two decades with the same company has been given a second chance to argue he was unfairly dismissed after a full bench found his former employer potentially led a Commission member into error when asserting there were no alternative positions available.
In an FWC case heavily reliant on circumstantial evidence, a former soldier with an unblemished work record has had his dismissal for stealing company property upheld after the tribunal heard of airport mix-ups on a remote island, alleged union skullduggery, an upset stomach – and a dead bat.
A full Federal Court has overturned a workplace safety finding that permit-holding union officials were rightly denied site access for neglecting to include their middle names on an entry notice, reinforcing that flawless paperwork comes a distant second to protection of workers.
The FWC has upheld under the small business code the summary dismissal of a manager accused of blackmailing his employer into paying an $85,000 separation package in return for him abandoning a proposed complaint to OHS authorities.
A court has thrown out an aggrieved former employee's bullying case, finding he could not substantiate claims of a "complex conspiracy" that involved a flatulent supervisor.
The FWC has ruled that a public health organisation's $270,000-a-year former CFO is not entitled to pursue an unfair dismissal claim because he is not covered by an agreement.
The FWC has poked holes in the record-keeping and training practices of an employer and its HR manager that summarily dismissed a long-serving employee for breaching its "zero tolerance" mobile phone policy without making sure he was aware of it.
In a closely-watched dismissal case contemplating how much weight should be attached to mitigating factors, an FWC majority full bench has reinstated a worker sacked for his foul abuse and threats to colleagues via text messages and phone calls while drunk.
An FWC full bench has accepted that ordering a "cooling off" period unfairly rewarded an employer for its intransigence in refusing to bargain during a protected strike.
