HR Leader’s top 10 unfair dismissal stories for 2025

Read here our 10 most-read stories about unfair dismissal proceedings that came before the Fair Work Commission this year.

10. ‘Absurd’: FWC rules against school firing teacher for yelling at students

Sacked for yelling at a student, in June, a teacher at the Australian International Islamic College stood before the commission in her unfair dismissal application case. This story goes through why she was not the worst of the senior teachers and how she received over $55,000 in compensation.

9. Axed high school swimming coach claims unfair dismissal

After leading the school’s swimming squad through an “extremely successful season,” a multi-medal-winning swimming coach was let go by the Anglican Church Grammar School in Brisbane. This story goes into what the angry parents thought, with one parent seeing his employment with the school swim team as “exactly what the club needed”.

8. Lecturer says university unfairly pushed him out

In February, a senior law lecturer requested permission to bring an appeal against a tossed-out general protections application that he made against his employer. The story reveals the reasons why the Fair Work Commission found he “no longer” had a “valid claim” under the general protections provisions of the Fair Work Act.

7. University professor challenges dismissal based on near-decade-old misconduct

Allegations of “serious misconduct” backdated to 2017 had caught up to a university professor at the University of Melbourne when he was sacked in late 2024. The professor was alleged to have pursued a PhD candidate that he was supervising, with allegations of unsolicited comments and “overly personal” out-of-hours correspondence. However, when the case went to the Fair Work Commission in the midyear, the professor came out unscathed with a reinstatement and nearly $30,000 in back payments.

6. Sex party talks and desk farts: Employee loses unfair dismissal case over office antics

The headline pretty much sums up this story. In October, an office worker who spent his time at work spilling NSFW tales to women colleagues failed a dismissal appeal during a two-day hearing. In the story, the Fair Work Commission found many things, one of which was that the workplace is neither the time nor place to be “sex-positive.”

5. 30-year public servant lost unfair dismissal battle against Commonwealth government

After nearly three decades in the public service, a Services Australia employee lost her unfair dismissal case, with the agency citing that she “could not meet the standard required” for her role after ongoing “performance issues” during a 15-month performance management process. The story revealed how the Fair Work Commission got to its decision and upheld the termination, citing that her employer had given her “full procedural fairness”.

4. Guzman Y Gomez worker alleges shifts were cut due to racial discrimination

Fast-food joint Guzman Y Gomez was taken to the Fair Work Commission earlier this year, after a former employee alleged racial motivations behind the franchise cutting her shifts. The story resulted in a whopping $10,000 remedy for her employer’s refusal to provide her shifts for the final 10 weeks of her employment.

3. Firing of ‘misogynistic’ HR business partner justified, Fair Work finds

In August, the Fair Work Commission upheld engineering and architecture company Stantec Australia’s decision to dismiss an employee with alleged misogynistic views. The story dives into the case, including the doctored text messages, which the commission said, “even the famed spy novelist John Le Carre would have been impressed by.”

2. Employee fired after chucking sickie for AFL Gather Round

In 2024, Mitchell Fuller of Madison Branson Lawyers in Melbourne took a sickie to attend the AFL Gather Round. This story explores the method behind man, which started with his excuse to his employer that he had a “tough time sleeping” and was not “feeling up for coming into the office”.

1. Brothel receptionist called ‘backstabbing c--t’ by boss wins unfair dismissal case

Coming at number one on our list, a 63-year-old receptionist who had worked at a Melbourne “relaxation centre” from 2009 was terminated last year, shortly after having gotten cosmetic surgery. Riddled with drama, arguments, and profanity, this story walks readers through how a 15-year tenure led to a broken-down relationship and compensation of $8,400.