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In early-August 2023, a subsidiary company of Clive Palmer’s Mineralogy group, terminated the employment of 125 workers at the Palmer Coolum Resort in a sudden mass sacking event purportedly initiated due to a “large amount” of “fraud, theft and other matters of dishonesty” across the entire site. The “scattergun approach” resulted in 47 unfair dismissal applications being lodged, four of which proceeded to Hearing, with Commissioner Bernie Riordan determining all matters and awarding sizeable compensation in each instance.

In a lesson in how not to interact with the Fair Work Commission (FWC) an applicant pursuing a dismissal claim repeatedly insulted a Presidential Member while failing in a bid to have the Member recuse himself from dealing with the case.

Continue reading ““Attention Idiots” – Sacked Worker Tees Off on Fair Work Commission”

The Queensland Government yesterday announced the appointment of four new Commissioners to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission (QIRC). 

Continue reading “ES Welcomes Appointments to QIRC”

The ES office and advice line will close for the Festive period at 3.30pm, Friday, 22 December 2023 and re-open, on reduced hours, at 9.00am, Tuesday, 2 January 2024. Standard operating hours will resume from 8 January 2024.

After suffering a set-back in September when potential passage of its Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Bill was delayed until next year (see our related article), the Albanese Government has continued to refine the proposed legislation, agreeing to adjust provisions – to varying degrees – pertaining to the ‘same job, same pay’ stipulations for labour-hire workers; protections for gig workers; and, desired changes to casual employment.

The Fair Work Commission has handsomely compensated two former employees of a Gold Coast cabaret venue after they were sacked for breaching confidentiality by discussing a co-worker’s new salary rate over social media, following near-identical termination processes labelled deficient in the “extreme”.

A Disability Support Worker (DSW) has been awarded nearly $30,000 compensation by the Fair Work Commission after it found the actions of her Western Australian employer triggered her resignation, tendered when the employment relationship broke-down as she sought to resume duty after suffering a heart attack, which was the second she had experienced during her eight years of employment.

The Fair Work Commission has lambasted an employer for dismissing a young casual employee over “baseless” accusations she had engaged in criminal activity, recently awarding the sacked Duty Manager over $20,000 in compensation, having determined in October that her termination was unfair.

A South Australian salary packaging company has satisfied the Fair Work Commission (FWC) that their refusal of an experienced employee’s flexible work request to remain working entirely from home was made on reasonable business grounds.