Dorward and Secretary, Department of Employment

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered the case of Dorward and the Secretary, Department of Employment. The dispute concerned the applicant's eligibility for a redundancy payment under the Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG) scheme. The applicant had been employed by a company that ceased to trade, and subsequently sought to claim redundancy pay from the FEG. The Secretary had initially determined that the applicant was not entitled to a redundancy payment because the applicant had not been made redundant in accordance with the terms of their employment contract.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant's employment termination constituted a "redundancy" for the purposes of the FEG Act 2012 (Cth). Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine if the applicant's employment was terminated because their position was no longer required, or if it was terminated for other reasons, such as misconduct or resignation, which would disqualify them from FEG assistance. The Tribunal also considered the interpretation of "redundancy" within the context of the employment contract and the FEG Act.

The Tribunal reasoned that for an employee to be considered redundant under the FEG Act, their position must genuinely no longer be required by the employer. In this instance, the company had ceased to trade, meaning all positions within the company were no longer required. The Tribunal found that the applicant's employment was terminated as a direct consequence of the company's cessation of trading, and therefore, the applicant's position was redundant. The Tribunal applied the principles of statutory interpretation to the FEG Act and relevant case law concerning redundancy.

The Tribunal set aside the original decision and remitted the matter to the Secretary for reconsideration of the applicant's eligibility for a redundancy payment under the FEG scheme.