The Fair Work Commission has stated that in some cases, an employer made need to summarily dismiss an employee to emphasise “importance of establishing and maintaining a safe and healthy workplace”.
Commissioner David Gregory said “simply providing a warning and, in effect, a second chance, cannot be the appropriate response in every case involving a safety breach.”
He found that the employee involved in one particular case had deliberately breached the company’s safety policy and the action could have resulted in serious injury or death. The worker was dismissed following an investigation by the employer.
The Fair Work Commission reviewed the process followed by the employer to investigate the incident and found the worker had been correctly notified, had been given opportunity to respond, and had been allowed a support person.
This proves the importance of following proper procedure and taking all necessary steps to ensure any investigation is comprehensive but fair. This is the only way to ensure the support of the Fair Work Commission when any cases may be presented to them.