The Fair Work Commission’s (FWC) recent decision in Courtney Sewell v dnata Airport Services Pty Limited [2025] FWC 2823 (Sewell) serves as an important reminder of the risks employers face when workplace investigations fall short of proper processes. Irrespective of whether an employer acts promptly, any procedural or communicative flaws can still lead to findings […]
The Victorian Government is proposing groundbreaking legislation to legally entrench a right for employees to work from home (WFH) “at least two days per week”, where their role can reasonably be performed remotely, aiming to boost workforce participation and work–life balance. Crucially for small businesses, no exemption by size will be made. Subsequently, all employers, […]
In the recent decision of Bakers Delight Holdings Ltd v Fair Work Ombudsman [2025] FCAFC 144 (the Decision), the Federal Court of Australia (the Court) has held that the Fair Work Ombudsman (the FWO) has the power to hold franchisors to account for the conduct of their franchisees, namely, breaches of the underpayment provisions of […]
The Allen Labor Government has introduced the Restricting Non-Disclosure Agreements (Sexual Harassment at Work) Bill 2025 (the Bill) to the Victorian Parliament. The Bill seeks to limit the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in the settlement of workplace sexual harassment matters, marking the first legislation of its kind in Australia and one of the few […]
A tribunal in Queensland has awarded a sexually harassed and assaulted worker $140,000 in damages. The worker was employed by Oishi Teppanyaki & Café Pty Limited as a waitress and worked split shifts. The owner of the café contravened s 119 of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 (Qld) by non-consensually touching the waitress and locking the […]
In the recent decision of Priyansh Singh Panwar v Portier Pacific Pty Ltd [2025] FWC 1578 (the Decision) the Fair Work Commission (the FWC) has declined an application for an unfair deactivation on the basis that s 536LD(c) of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the FWA) concerns a single period of work, rather than multiple […]
In the recent decision of Mater Misericordiae Ltd Trading AS Mater v Robyn Tyler [2025] FWC 1396 (the Decision), the Fair Work Commission (the FWC) determined that an employee cannot reject “other acceptable employment” on the basis that the new role does not allow for flexible working arrangements. Case Overview Ms. Tyler commenced employment with […]
A parliamentary inquiry by the Economy and Infrastructure Committee (the Committee) led by Labor MP Alison Marchant (the Inquiry) has found that laws governing workplace surveillance are outdated. The Inquiry asserts that recent technological advancements as well as the long-term impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic which have seen workers shift to remote working has led […]
The Fair Work Commission (the FWC) have exercised new powers to deal with disputes regarding gig economy workers and ‘unfair deactivation’ in the recent decision of Ibrahim Jibril [2025] FWC 1289 (the Decision). As such, the FWC determined that an Uber driver was not protected by the new unfair deactivation provisions under the Fair Work […]
In the recent decision of Renee Passmore v The Trustee for The CBC Lawyers Unit Trust, Sandra Clive [2025] FWC 575 (the Decision) the Fair Work Commission (the FWC) has stated that it will refer a law firm to the Fair Work Ombudsman for unauthorised deductions from employee wages in breach of the Legal Services […]