Casual Employee Found to Have Abandoned Employment

Facts of the case:

In March 2024, the employee transitioned from a permanent role in the company’s Human Resources (HR) team to a casual position in the Operations team, allowing him flexibility to seek permanent graduate positions elsewhere. 

The employee worked rostered shifts between 25 March and 18 April 2024, but failed to attend five shifts without notice. When contacted, he apologised, citing a personal emergency with his puppy.

From 9 May 2024, the employee again stopped attending his shifts or notifying the employer of his absence. Despite repeated attempts by his manager and HR advisor to contact him, there was no response. The HR advisor eventually contacted the employee's emergency contact for a welfare check. The employee briefly responded but did not follow through with further communication.

On 14 June 2024, the employer sent a letter indicating his employment would be terminated due to abandonment, offering him a final opportunity to respond. The employee did not reply but later lodged a General Protections claim, asserting his absence was due to poor mental health and that he was on annual leave. He argued that he had not repudiated his employment contract.

Considerations

When it considered the facts of the case, the FWC found the following:

1. that the employee had only attended 27 days of work between March and June, when he had been rostered to work 65 days. For the other 38 rostered shifts the employee did not provide any prior notice or apply for leave.  

2. the Applicant was aware he had to contact the Respondent if he could not attend for work; and

3. no medical evidence was provided that supported the Applicant’s claim that he was unfit to attend for the extended period of time or prohibited him from having the capacity to communicate with the Respondent. 

Findings 

The Commissioner therefore found: “Having considered the evidence I am satisfied that it demonstrates that the Applicant abandoned his employment when between the period of 9 May 2024 and 14 June 2024 he didn’t attend for rostered shifts, didn’t provide notice to his employer that he was not going to attend for work and did not provide a proper explanation for his non-attendance. In doing so, he repudiated the employment relationship. This was accepted by the Respondent on 14 June 2024 by its correspondence sent to the Applicant on that date.”[1]

The ruling upheld the employer's position that the employee had abandoned his job by failing to meet work obligations or offer any legitimate explanation for his absence.

Take away for member clubs

Clubs are reminded to: 

• Follow up with casual employees who do not attend shifts in writing and consider termination where necessary.
• Establish and communicate clear procedures around casual shifts and the requirement to notifying if they cannot attend.