Austin and Commonwealth Bank of Australia (Compensation)

This matter concerned an application by Ms Austin against the Commonwealth Bank of Australia regarding compensation for a compensable injury. The dispute centred on whether Ms Austin had suffered a permanent impairment as a result of her employment with the Bank, and consequently, whether the Bank was liable to pay compensation for expenses and loss of income. The case was heard by Deputy J W Constance P.

The court was required to determine whether Ms Austin continued to suffer the effects of a psychiatric condition to which her former employment with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia contributed to a significant degree since 8 June 2016. Further, the court had to consider whether this condition constituted a permanent impairment, and if so, the degree of that impairment for the purposes of compensation under the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (Cth).

The court found that Ms Austin had suffered from a psychological condition, specifically an adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood, which had been significantly contributed to by her employment with the Bank. In reaching this conclusion, the court preferred the evidence of Dr Phillips and Dr Rowe over that of Dr George and Mr Haralambous, accepting that while Ms Austin had experienced discrete incidents of anxiety and depression prior to her employment, these did not indicate an ongoing condition. The court was satisfied that Ms Austin had suffered a permanent impairment to a degree of 20 per cent, a figure not contested by the Bank.

Consequently, the reviewable decisions of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia denying liability were set aside. The court ordered that the Commonwealth Bank of Australia was liable to compensate Ms Austin for expenses incurred and loss of income arising from her compensable injury. The Bank was also found liable to compensate Ms Austin for a 20 per cent permanent impairment arising from the same injury.