Academics are warning of a "chilling effect" on the ability of public servants to express their political views, following today's High Court finding that a government department lawfully dismissed a public affairs officer over a barrage of highly-critical anonymous tweets.
The addition of 'human resources' to an acting health and safety advisor's job title has helped persuade the FWC that a council can rely on its own employees rather than external legal representation to defend an unfair dismissal case.
In a decision probing the practical application of natural justice and procedural fairness principles in a public transport provider's disciplinary process, the FWC has held that it fell short in concluding that a tram driver tried to "wilfully mislead" an investigation.
The AFP did not discriminate against a police officer seeking to have 32 weeks of half-pay maternity leave count towards her service, the Federal Court finding the relevant agreement's intention was only to cover full-pay periods.
The CPSU has failed in its bid to claw back allowances in full for border protection employees who went on a series of strikes over a three year period.
A public servant who claims her transfer to the HR department constituted bullying and retaliation for whistleblowing has failed to convince the FWC to issue interim orders removing the financial security authority's chief people officer as her supervisor and preventing disciplinary action.
An Aboriginal night patrol officer sacked for timesheet discrepancies has won back his council role after an FWC member took into account "very strong" ties to his remote community and the dearth of alternative employment opportunities.
James Cook University is fighting back against a Federal Circuit Court finding that it unlawfully sacked an academic who criticised prominent climate research, while the NTEU has welcomed a finding that the institution's code of conduct is "subordinate" to an intellectual freedom clause in its agreement.
A Northern Territory council has overcome union opposition to retain its right to legal representation in a "highly contested" argument over an night patrol officer's reinstatement.
FWC President Iain Ross's delegate has refused to refer to the Federal Court IR Minister Kelly O'Dwyer's "revolutionary" question of law as to whether the Fair Work Act allows indirectly discriminatory terms in agreements, while also flagging potential hurdles to her quest for a review of a new fire brigade deal.
