Rail worker fired over Nazi salute to passing trains

The Fair Work Commission dropped the unfair dismissal application of a train driver who performed a Nazi salute towards passing freight trains.

Last May, train driver Eric Jordan was dismissed for Nazi saluting passing freight trains at Mittagong station in NSW’s Southern Highlands.

In his February decision, Fair Work Commission deputy president Bryce Cross dismissed Jordan’s application, ruling that his conduct warranted termination.

Pacific National referred to CCTV footage at Mittagong station, which appears to show Jordan performing a Nazi salute towards a passing Aurizon freight service at 12:38pm and a passing SCT Logistics freight service at 1:21pm.

Jordan vehemently denied these claims, arguing that he was gesturing an “all clear”.

He submitted that thousands of times a day, rail workers in NSW performed the same gesture as he did.

Cross said the footage was “clear and compelling”.

“Even the isolated still images from the CCTV footage of the gestures … show the applicant performing a Nazi salute,” Cross said.

A trainee locomotive driver in the passing SCT Logistics freight service said the gesture Jordan performed was at odds with what she would normally expect to see.

“I double-checked and looked directly at the man. At this point, I was about 30 metres away from him. His arm was held out from his body and in a rigid pose. He had twisted his body at an angle of about 45 degrees to the train while he was holding the gesture,” the witness said.

Jordan submitted that he repudiated Nazism and its symbols, found the Nazi salute incredibly offensive, and considered himself a person who is accepting of all cultures.

“In closing, it is worth noting that my mentor and the man who introduced me to my career in the rail industry follows the Jewish faith and that I hold the utmost respect [for] him,” he said.

When questioned, Jordan gave evidence that he would expect Pacific National to terminate someone who did a Nazi salute while working.

Upon consideration of evidence, the deputy president dismissed Jordan’s application, finding that the gesture was sufficient to warrant termination and that procedural fairness was afforded to Jordan, upholding his dismissal.

The case citation: Eric Jordan v Pacific National Services Pty Ltd (U2025/10201).