Job was advertised as 12 months but the actual contract was just nine months
The Fair Work Commission (FWC) recently dealt with an unfair dismissal application that raised questions about the distinction between a dismissal and the natural expiry of a fixed-term employment contract.
The worker argued that he had been dismissed when his employment ended on a specified date, whilst the employer contended that no dismissal had occurred because the contract had simply reached its predetermined conclusion.
The worker advanced several arguments to support his claim, pointing to inconsistencies between the initial job advertisement and the final contract terms, conversations with managers about future employment prospects, and statements from colleagues about pathways to permanent positions.
He also argued that economic circumstances had pressured him into accepting contract terms that differed from what was originally advertised.
The case turned on whether the ending of a fixed-term contract could constitute a dismissal under the Fair Work Act, and whether informal conversations about future employment could override the written terms of an employment contract.
Between March 2024 and 6 September 2024, the worker had been engaged as a contractor through a labour hire agency and was placed with a state government department performing duties as a contract manager.
This engagement was for a six-month period and was scheduled to expire on 6...
When examiners don’t get veterans’ records, bad decisions aren’t a mistake—they’re a systemic failure. In a blistering oversight hearing this week, members of Congress openly questioned whether th...