Dismissal by Text costs Employer $12,500
An employer who dismissed its casual employee of more than two years by text message and without a valid reason was ordered to pay $12,465.00 in compensation to the employee.
The Commission said that “unless there is some genuine apprehension of physical violence or geographical impediment, the message of dismissal should be conveyed face to face. To do otherwise is unnecessarily callous. Even in circumstances where text message or other electronic communications are ordinarily used, the advice of termination of employment is a matter of such significance that basic human dignity requires that dismissal be conveyed personally with arrangements for the presence of a support person and documentary confirmation. The procedure that the employer adopted whereby it advised the applicant of his dismissal by way of text message, and which was for undisclosed reason, was plainly unjust, unreasonable, harsh, and, unconscionably undignified.”
If you find yourself in a situation as an employer which may result in the termination of an employee, contact us to see if we can help you ensure that the termination is effected in accordance with the law.
Underpaying Employers hit with massive fines
Employers that are caught and prosecuted for underpaying their employees are likely to be ordered to pay compensation and fines of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
A Tokyo Sushi franchisee has been hit with $383,616 in penalties from the Ombudsman when it was discovered that 31 employees had been underpaid more than $70,000.
Furthermore, MasterChef star George Calombaris has just been ordered to pay a $200,000 fine for underpaying 515 workers $7.8 million.
Cases such as these stress the importance in ensuring that employees are being paid in accordance with the right Award.
Engaging contractors that mainly provide labour could be ‘super’ expensive
Under superannuation laws, a contractor who “works under a contract that is wholly or principally for the labour of the person” is considered an employee under that law and is entitled to be paid superannuation. This is despite the person being considered a genuine contractor under other employment laws.
In a recent case, a contractor dentist took action to recover employment entitlements and superannuation from his employer / principal contractor. The Federal Court held that although the dentist was a genuine contractor and not entitled to employment entitlements under the Fair Work Act and the Long Service Leave Act, he did fall within the ‘extended’ definition of “employee” under superannuation laws, and was therefore entitled to unpaid superannuation.
If you engage contractors that mainly provide labour, contact us to see if we can assist you in restructuring the arrangement to protect yourself.
Dismissal for stealing two packets of cigarettes deemed ‘fair’ by the Commission
Two employees which stole 2 packets of cigarettes valued at $50 from a Virgin Australia flight’s freight load were dismissed for serious misconduct when, despite compelling evidence against them, they each denied that the theft had taken place. Because of their denial, neither employee argued that dismissal was harsh given the $50 value of the goods that were alleged to have been stolen, which may have led to a very different outcome.
In the end, the Commission concluded that the employer had a valid reason and had followed due process, and it deemed the dismissals to be fair and dismissed the employees’ unfair dismissal applications.
Fair Work raids – almost 50% of Employers non-compliant
A whopping 725 workers have been back-paid more than $330,000 after a series of raids by the Ombudsman’s office identified worrying levels of wage theft in regional Victoria and NSW.
Less than three weeks after recovering $580,000 in stolen wages from regional businesses across Australia’s eastern seaboard, the Ombudsman has unveiled the results of another series of inspections in Albury-Wodonga, Ballarat and Wollongong. It found nearly half (47%) of the 489 businesses that received surprise door knocks were in breach of workplace laws, including retail outlets, takeaway shops, cafes and bars.
Sandra Parker of the Ombudsman’s office said “Australia’s minimum pay rates are not negotiable, and employers in the fast food, restaurant and café sector need to actively check that they are paying their staff correctly before we visit their business.”
