An office worker was fired for calling her boss a rude name (Representative Image)
Ever thought you would get paid despite calling your boss names? Well, such a case has occurred in Australia. A 56-year-old woman, who claimed she had been unfairly sacked, has received a $6,000 compensation payout. The Darwin staffer worked at a recruitment firm named Celotti Workforce and was fired under the allegations that she called her boss a “w****r” under her breath. She also seems to have called her boss a "misogynist". On grounds of these allegations, she was fired from her office. Unhappy with the firm's decision, the woman appealed to the Fair Work Commission and asked them to consider it as a case of unfair dismissal.
The commission did award her a compensation payout though they did not reinstate her at her former role in Celotti Workforce. They had reasons for it.
The commission determined the woman's behaviour and language in the office against senior management was “gross insubordination” According to them, she was guilty of “deliberate agitation” of colleagues and “persistent workplace bullying”, stated a report in News.com.au, an Australian news site. She was also accused of having called one of her junior colleagues a “little b***h” and burping or coughing in another colleague's face.
However, reports suggest that the woman denied such allegations.
According to a Ladbible report, the 56-year-old would roll her eyes during morning meetings and mutter names about the general manager during work hours. Also, the commission said that the woman's behaviour did not meet the threshold for serious misconduct.
The Ladbible report quoted commissioner Paula Spencer as saying that the woman's behaviour “affected the wellbeing of the other employees of the workplace, contrary to the duty of care owed to them in their employment, but did not cause serious and imminent risk to the health and safety of employees or to the reputation, viability or profitability of the employer's business”.
The woman told the commission that being fired was a personal, professional and financial disaster for her as she would not be able to get another job due to her age.
According to the News.com.au report, Ms Spencer decided that the firing was unjust because of procedural faults. Owing to such procedural flaws, she entitled the woman to an equivalent of four weeks' pay in lieu of notice.
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