A staffer's job ended automatically - and that decided whether his claim could proceed
When is a worker "dismissed"? A Fair Work Full Bench ruled that a job ending automatically under legislation does not count as a dismissal.
In a decision handed down on July 15, 2026, a Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission held that a parliamentary staffer whose job ended automatically under legislation had not been "dismissed" - and so could not pursue an unfair dismissal claim.
The worker had spent years in a federal senator's office. He joined as an electorate officer in 2019 and moved into an assistant adviser role in 2022, employed as a "personal employee" under the Members of Parliament (Staff) Act 1984, the law that governs how parliamentarians staff their offices.
His exit came through the machinery of parliamentary staffing rather than any decision aimed at him. Following the 2025 federal election, a new determination revoked the earlier authorisation under which he had been employed as a personal employee. Section 14 of the Act, headed "Automatic termination of employment," did the rest: once that authorisation fell away, the employment ended by force of the statute. The end date was deferred by eight weeks to August 17, 2025, but the termination itself was automatic.
In practical terms, the worker barely paused. Two days later he began a three-month contract, then moved into an ongoing role in another senator's office. According to the decision, he was out of work for a...
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