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ARTICLE · 14 FEBRUARY 2026

Commission finds dismissal harsh despite "racist" comments at toolbox meeting

Piper Alderman
Piper Alderman
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Timely reminder of the need to afford employees procedural fairness before deciding whether to terminate an employee's employment.

AustraliaEmployment and HR
Ben Motro
Ben Motro
Emily Setter
Emily Setter
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The recent Fair Work Commission decision of Peter Jones v Exclusive Contracting (WA) Pty Ltd [2026] FWC 253 (the Exclusive Contracting Decision) is a timely reminder of the need to afford employees procedural fairness before deciding whether to terminate an employee's employment.

In this article, Ben Motro (Partner) and Emily Setter (Senior Associate), outline the criteria the Commission must take into account when deciding whether a dismissal was unfair, before setting out the factual background to the Exclusive Contracting Decision, and key takeaways for employers.

  1. What is "unfair dismissal"?

The Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act) contains protections for employees against "unfair dismissal". Where an employee falls within the jurisdiction, the key question for the Commission is whether the dismissal was "harsh, unjust or unreasonable" within the meaning of section 387 of the Act.

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