Case Law - Employment Law Handbook (Page 18)

Case Law

Employee dishonesty can outweigh long service and a prior unblemished employment record

The Case Qantas Airways Limited v Dawson (2017) Mr Dawson, aged 50, was a flight attendant with Qantas for 28 years. Qantas dismissed Mr Dawson after an investigation that found he had stolen alcohol during a flight. Prior to making the decision to dismiss, Qantas asked Mr Dawson to respond

Dismissal may be appropriate where trust and confidence is broken

The Case Georgia Sologinkin v Cosmetic Suppliers Pty Ltd T/A Coty (2017) Ms Sologinkin had worked for Cosmetic Suppliers Pty Ltd T/A Coty (Coty) since May 2000. Ms Sologinkin was initially employed as a junior sales representative, then team leader and later as state sales manager. Ms Sologinkin

Terminating an expired enterprise agreement to assist bargaining

The Case Loy Yang Power Enterprise Agreement 2012; CFMEU v AGL Loy Yang Pty Ltd t/a AGL Loy Yang (2017) The Loy Yang Power Enterprise Agreement 2012 (Agreement) covered employees who worked at the Loy Yang open cut coal mine and the Loy Yang A Power Station. The nominal

Refusing to employ a job applicant because of a medical condition

The Case Shizas v Commissioner of Police (2017) Mr Shizas applied to become a police officer with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) on two occasions. In March 2013, the AFP gave Mr Shizas a conditional offer of employment in response to his application. However, he later failed to obtain employment

Unlawful industrial action costs each employee $1000

The Case Australian Building and Construction Commissioner v Mamudi & Ors (2017) A building contractor engaged approximately 130 employees to work on the WA Water Corporation’s new waste treatment plant. On 20 February 2015, a group of workers attended a pre-work meeting with the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy

Calculating annual rate of earnings to determine unfair dismissal eligibility

The Case Mark Jolley v Moorelex Pty Ltd T/A Lexus of Blackburn (2017) Mark Jolley was employed by Moorelex Pty Ltd trading as Lexus of Blackburn (Moorelex) as its General Manager, until his employment was terminated on 30 December 2016. Mr Jolley commenced unfair dismissal proceedings in the Fair

Obtaining right of entry for a reasonable suspicion of a breach of the WHS Act

The Case CFMEU (NSW Branch) v Acciona Infrastructure Australia Pty Ltd and Ferrovial Agroman (Australia) Pty Ltd t/as the Pacifico Acciona Ferrovial Joint Venture (2017) Acciona Infrastructure Australia and Ferrovial Agroman (Australia) Pty Ltd, trading as the Pacifico Acciona Ferrovial Joint Venture (Pacifico), was involved in an upgrade of

Assessing whether an employee can perform the inherent requirements of a role

The Case Huntley v State of NSW, Department of Police and Justice (Corrective Services NSW) (2015) In 2011, Ms Huntley – a parole officer who had worked for Corrective Services NSW since 2001 – was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease and a sleep disorder. Following the diagnosis, Ms Huntley’s duties were

Underpayment claims when employees perform work outside their classifications

The Case Ardlie & Others v Qantas Airways Ltd (2016) A group of Qantas employees worked as level 5 customer support officers at Adelaide Airport. The employees had worked in the old airport terminal until 2006 when they began working in the new airport terminal. The employees were regularly asked

Access to external documents referred to in an enterprise agreement

The Case Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union v Sparta Mining Services Pty Ltd (2016) In July 2016, the Fair Work Commission (FWC) approved Sparta Mining Service Pty Ltd’s (SMS) Enterprise Agreement. The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) lodged an appeal. It asserted that SMS had not

Employees not yet covered by an enterprise agreement cannot vote to approve it

The Case Shop, Distributive & Allied Employees Association v ALDI Foods Pty Ltd (2016) ALDI Foods Pty Ltd (ALDI) wished to expand its operations by opening stores in South Australia. In May 2015, 17 existing ALDI employees who were already working in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland accepted offers

Email exchange results in an enforceable contract

The Case Jordan Latham v Manly Warringah Sea Eagles Limited (2016) Jordan Latham played rugby league for Manly Warringah Sea Eagles Limited (Manly). In negotiating his fee for the 2016 season, Manly’s recruitment manager emailed Mr Latham’s manager as follows: “I can ... offer $55,000.” Mr Latham’s

General protection claim nets employee $1.2 million

The Case CFMEU v Hail Creek Coal Pty Ltd (2016) Mr Haylett was employed by Hail Creek Coal Pty Ltd (HCC) as an equipment operator. Mr Haylett suffered a spinal injury at work and was re-trained as a drill rig operator. He worked in this role for 3 years. HCC

Fair Work Ombudsman targeting franchisors

The Case Fair Work Ombudsman v Yogurberry World Square Pty Ltd and Anors (2016) The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) sued three corporate respondents in the Yogurberry corporate group: * the employer, Yogurberry World Square Pty Ltd (Yogurberry World), which operated the Yogurberry store in world square; and * as accessories to the

Casual employee found to be entitled to annual leave

The Case Skene v Workpac Pty Ltd (2016) Mr Skene was employed by Workpac Pty Ltd (Workpac) as a dump truck operator in a Queensland coal mine. Mr Skene signed a contract of employment that stated he was employed as a casual or fixed-term contract employee, and his employment could