Published 26 June 2017 In the case of Darren Lacey and Chris Kandelaars v Murrays Australia Pty Limited; Andrew Cullen [2017] FWC 3136, the Fair Work Commission (FWC) refused to make an order to stop bullying. Mr Lacey and Mr Kandelaars were both employed by Murrays as bus drivers. They claimed their manager, Mr Cullen,…
Category: Recent Cases
Employee restrained from working for Australian company pursuant to USA employment agreement
Published 28 May 2017 In a recent case, Naiad Dynamics US INC v Vidakovic, the Supreme Court of Western Australia granted an injunction to prevent an employee from working for an Australian employer until the enforceability of a restraint of trade clause which was governed by the law of Connecticut, USA could be determined at…
“Wilfully blind” accounting firm accessorily liable for underpayments of client
Published 16 May 2017 In a recent case, Fair Work Ombudsman v Blue Impression Pty Ltd & Ors , the Federal Circuit Court found an accounting firm accessorily liable for an employer’s failure to pay Award rates. Ezy Accounting 123 Pty Ltd (Ezy) was an accounting firm employed by a Japanese restaurant (Blue Impression) to…
“Job swaps” found to be a reasonable redeployment option in redundancy case
Published 26 March 2017 Mr Grant Skinner; Mr Mark Pemberton; Mr Joshua Ross; Mr Kadin Hill; Ms Abigail Bryant; Mr Mareck Preston v Asciano Services Pty Ltd T/A Pacific National Bulk The Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission recently found the dismissal of seven employees was not a case of genuine redundancy because the…
Dismissed employee with psychological condition not victim of adverse action because he failed to be contactable during absence
Published 23 March 2017 Laviano v Fair Work Ombudsman [2017] FCCA 197 A recent case in the Federal Circuit Court has found that an employee of the Fair Work Ombudsman who was dismissed and suffering from depression and anxiety was not a victim of adverse action as he was dismissed for failing to communicate with…
Managers fined for illegally deducting “administrative fees” and “meal fees” in excess of $100,000 from employees’ wages
Published 22 March 2017 FWO v Oz Staff Career Services Pty Ltd & Ors (No.2) [2016] FCCA 2594 A recent case in the Federal Circuit Court of Australia has found that managers may face serious penalties if they deliberately exploit their employees and provide false and misleading records to Fair Work Ombudsman inspectors. In the…