Despite a flawed dismissal process, Fair Work found a refrigerated transport driver's sacking was justified
The Fair Work Commission has dismissed an unfair dismissal application from a linehaul truck driver who was sacked after an entire ice cream load defrosted due to an incorrectly set trailer temperature, costing his employer more than $100,000.
Commissioner Sloan found the dismissal was not harsh, unjust or unreasonable, despite identifying a procedural irregularity in the way the transport company had carried out the termination.
The driver had worked as a linehaul truck driver for the refrigerated transport company since November 2022, completing an estimated 600 trips between Wagga Wagga and Melbourne.
On December 3, 2025, he was tasked with collecting ice cream from a cold storage facility at Truganina in Melbourne and returning it to Wagga Wagga, where another driver would take over for the final leg to Sydney.
The load sheet for the job specified the trailer had to be maintained at -22 degrees Celsius. It was the driver's responsibility to turn on the fridge motor and set the temperature before departure. Instead, the trailer remained at approximately -1 degree Celsius throughout his portion of the trip.
The company's night manager identified the error remotely through its telematics provider on December 4 and corrected the temperature setting.
By then, however, the damage was done. The entire load had defrosted and had to...
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