Her employer urged her to 'reset' and prove her commitment — then gave her zero shifts to do it. The Commission awarded her $7,969
He alleged that she was 'no longer in the system.'
Every worker hits a rough patch on the job, but you cannot fix a misstep if nobody tells them there is one. For a casual cleaner in Port Pirie, the heads-up never came. Instead, she showed up for her shifts cleaning public toilets only to find her keys withheld and a new hire doing her rounds. When she finally received an email from HACCP International Property Services citing vague performance issues, she asked for specifics. They simply wiped her off the roster and later texted that she was "no longer in the system." Refusing to let it slide, she took her case to the Fair Work Commission (FWC), which found the dismissal unfair and awarded her $7,969, less tax, after concluding she had never been given a genuine chance to improve, as reported by On Notice on October 27, 2026.
The sudden key swap
The woman's routine remained steady since August 2022, scrubbing public restrooms on an alternating weekly schedule for $613 a fortnight. Trouble only began earlier this year, on April 6, 2026, when she arranged for a co-worker to take over her upcoming public holiday shift. Following the management's direction, she handed her set of keys to the colleague a day prior. But when she tried to retrieve them the next morning to start her regular rounds, the colleague refused. "I have to train the new girl this week," they told her, revealing her shifts had already been reassigned without her knowledge.
The paperwork ambush
Hours after the awkward encounter, the management chimed in. The company's director sent an email alleging a regular pattern of neglected duties and incomplete tasks. They framed the sudden staffing as a way for her "to take this as an opportunity to reset and demonstrate her commitment to the team." But before she could do that, another text message confirmed she was cut from the upcoming roster. This caught her off guard. What made it even more bizarre was the fact that before this, she had never been flagged for her work.
The stonewalled responses
Armed with legal advice, the cleaner wrote back on April 16, pointing out the lack of prior warnings. She requested concrete examples of poor performance and a discussion. But despite the management promising her that they would "get back to her shortly," she never got a response. Frustrated by the silence, she sent another letter on May 8, 2026, demanding payment for the unpaid motor vehicle and toilet-cleaning allowances. Two days later, the director brushed off the claims. He alleged that she was "no longer in the system," making it clear the dispute was over.
Unfair dismissal of workers
Abrupt dismissals are not unusual in the United States either. In a 2022 National Employment Law Project and YouGov survey of 1,849 adults in the U.S. workforce, 69% of workers who had been fired or let go said their employer gave no reason or what they considered an unfair reason for the termination. Another 72% said they received no warning or opportunity to improve beforehand, while only 34% had ever received severance pay. Among workers who were employed at the time of the survey, 41% said they had enough savings to cover one month of expenses or less if they suddenly lost their job.
Total silence at hearing
This left the woman no choice but to take the fight to the FWC on May 30, 2026, but the HACCP chose to bury its head in the sand. Despite being granted extensions and multiple phone reminders from chambers, the company failed to show up. Left with an empty defense table, Commissioner Rogers proceeded without them. The Commission slammed the employer for a harsh, unjustified sacking. After calculating her wage loss and damages, the Commission awarded her $7,969, less tax, after the 26-week compensation cap was applied.
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