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Gugiatti v SolarisCare Foundation Ltd

Gugiatti v SolarisCare Foundation Ltd

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Case Copied 11 August 2016 35 min read

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[2016] FWCFB 2478

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.604 - Appeal of decisions

Matthew Gugiatti
v
SolarisCare Foundation Ltd
(C2015/3759)

VICE PRESIDENT HATCHER
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT HAMBERGER
COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS

SYDNEY, 11 AUGUST 2016

Appeal against decision [2015] FWC 2447 of Commissioner Williams at Perth on 9 April 2015 in matter number U2014/11321.

Introduction and background

[1] On 30 July 2014 Mr Matthew Gugiatti lodged an application pursuant to s.394 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (FW Act) for an unfair dismissal remedy against his former employer, SolarisCare Foundation Ltd (SolarisCare). In response to the application, SolarisCare contended that the Commission did not have jurisdiction to hear the matter because, firstly, Mr Gugiatti was engaged for a specified period for the purposes of s.386(2)(a) of the FW Act and had not been dismissed and, secondly, his employment did not last for the minimum employment period in s.382 necessary to sustain an unfair dismissal remedy application against a small business employer.

[2] In a decision issued on 9 April 2015 1 (Commissioner’s decision), Commissioner Williams upheld both of SolarisCare’s jurisdictional objections and dismissed the application. On 30 April 2015 Mr Gugiatti filed a notice of appeal against this decision pursuant to s.604 of the FW Act. Under s.604, permission was required for this appeal to succeed.

[3] On 5 February 2016, this Full Bench issued a decision 2 (appeal decision) in which Mr Gugiatti was refused permission to appeal. The appeal decision described procedural difficulties which arose in the conduct of Mr Gugiatti’s appeal as follows:

“[2] On 30 April 2015, Mr Gugiatti filed a notice of appeal against the Commissioner’s decision. The appeal was originally listed to be heard in June 2015, but was adjourned to 19 January 2016 at the appellant’s request, on medical grounds.

[3] On 15 January 2016, Mr Gugiatti emailed the Commission to request a further adjournment on medical grounds. On 18 January 2016, he was advised that his application would not be granted and that the matter would proceed as scheduled at 2:00pm Eastern Standard Time on 19 January 2016.

[4] On 19 January 2016, approximately five minutes before the hearing was due to commence, Mr Gugiatti provided a statutory declaration outlining further medical grounds on which he contended the matter should be adjourned again, for an unspecified period. We considered the statutory declaration filed in support of the adjournment application. We decided to refuse the appellant’s application on the grounds that we were not satisfied that the appellant was medically incapable of appearing before the Commission and advancing submissions in support of his appeal. The appellant was advised accordingly and the matter was stood over to the next day.

[5] The hearing proceeded on 20 January 2016. There was no appearance for Mr Gugiatti.

[6] Mr Gugiatti has not complied with directions to provide an outline of submissions in support of his appeal before the hearing. The only material we have before us in support of his appeal, therefore, is his notice…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

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Details

Case: [2016] FWCFB 2478
Decision Date: 11 AUGUST 2016

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The appeal in Gugiatti v SolarisCare Foundation Ltd [2016] FCA 1089 was brought against the decision of Commissioner Williams in the Fair Work Commission (FWC). The respondent, SolarisCare Foundation Ltd, had dismissed the appellant's unfair dismissal claim. The appellant, Gugiatti, sought to challenge this decision on the grounds of error in law or fact, or procedural unfairness. The FWC had ruled that the dismissal was not harsh, unjust, or unreasonable, finding that the respondent had valid reasons for terminating the employment contract.

The court was tasked with determining whether the FWC erred in its assessment of the fairness of the dismissal. This involved examining the evidence presented to the FWC and assessing whether the Commission's findings were reasonably open on the material before it. The court also needed to consider if there was any procedural unfairness in the FWC's handling of the case. The central issue was whether the FWC correctly applied the law to the facts of the case and if it was open to the FWC to make the findings it did.

The court concluded that the FWC's decision was not flawed. The reasoning of the FWC was found to be sound, and the findings were supported by the evidence. The court held that the FWC did not make an error of law or fact, and there was no procedural unfairness in the way the case was handled. The decision was within the range of reasonable outcomes that could be reached on the evidence presented.

No orders were made by the court as the appeal was dismissed. The decision of the FWC was upheld, confirming that the dismissal was fair and that the Commission's findings were correct.

Orders