The bar for "unreasonable conduct" sits higher than many employers think
An Australian employer beat an unfair dismissal claim, beat the appeal, then asked the Fair Work Commission to make the worker cover its costs. It lost.
On 28 April 2026, Commissioner Connolly of the Fair Work Commission dismissed an application by Lumia Care Services Pty Ltd to recover costs from a former employee, Luca Yin, who had unsuccessfully challenged his redundancy. The costs application was brought under sections 400A and 611 of the Fair Work Act 2009.
The backstory will sound familiar to any HR leader who has managed a contested exit. Yin lodged his unfair dismissal application on 2 May 2025, arguing his role had not been made genuinely redundant. He represented himself and, notably, was assisted by generative AI in preparing his submissions. Lumia Care was represented in-house by Mr R. Medina, the lead member of its people team.
After a hearing on 13 August 2025, the Commissioner ruled in the company's favour on 21 October 2025, finding Yin's dismissal was a genuine redundancy. Lumia Care filed its costs application shortly afterwards, on 27 October 2025. Yin separately pursued an appeal, which a Full Bench of the Commission dismissed on 22 January 2026.
Lumia Care's costs argument was straightforward: back on 3 July 2025, it had offered Yin $5,192.30 to settle the matter, and he had refused. The offer remained open until 7 July. The company said his refusal, combined with a notice to...
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