The Reasonable Person Test Explained The ‘reasonable person’ test is one of those legal quirks that form an enduring part of the common law, despite being very hard to actually define. One human causing damage to another is certainly a tale as old as history itself. And judges in various forms have always had the […]
Confidentiality Should Be No Surprise In a recent case involving a union delegate acting as a support person and a breach of confidentiality, the Fair Work Commission noted that those acting as support people during workplace disciplinary processes must be clearly informed by the employer about their obligation to maintain confidentiality. This might seem to […]
Protecting Against Unwanted Sexual Advances at Work The definition of a workplace might seem relatively simple – the office, the work site, the place where you carry out your duties of employment. Yet a recent finding of the Full Federal Court has affirmed one judge’s ruling that the workplace can quite often extend beyond the […]
The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has criticised the Department of Defence for its dismissal of an employee for excessive personal internet browsing, and the use of an anonymous search engine. The dismissal took place after a workplace investigation which the commission deemed to be unfair and unreasonable. During the investigation of the employee, the Department […]
A recent attempt by a former employee to take action against ANZ bank for bullying has been dismissed due to the fact that the employee is no longer working for the bank. According to the deputy president of the Fair Work Commission, the employee had no reasonable prospects of success so continuation of the case […]
A recent ruling by the Federal Circuit Court found that a law firm hadn’t taken adverse action against one of its solicitors after she complained of bullying and sexual harassment in December 2011. Emails sent from the solicitor to the firm where she stated that she wanted to consider how to part ways amicably and […]
A family-run photography business has been ordered to pay a former employee more than $235,000 in compensation and penalties in a constructive dismissal ruling by the Federal Circuit Court of Australia. The ruling, made on April 30 in Melbourne, imposed penalties on the former employers for discrimination and breaching the Fair Work Act, after they […]
In a recent court ruling the Industrial Relations Commission of NSW decided that a NSW public servant who was dismissed for inappropriate touching should be given his job back. The policy officer for the NSW Attorney General and Justice Department lost his job in 2012 after touching the breasts of five women during a […]
Last week the Fair Work Commission ruled in favour of a teacher who appealed against unfair dismissal after 37 years of service. The appeal was granted in spite of recognition that there was a valid reason for him not to be reinstated. In the ruling the Fair Work Commission stated that the employer […]
On March 25th, an application against Energy Australia made by a former director of corporate affairs was dismissed at the Federal Court by Justice Julie Ann Dodds-Streeton. Former Energy Australia employee Kate Shea claimed that she had been made redundant in 2012 as retribution for sexual harassment complaints made previously and this was found […]