Irene Cryer v Australia Zoo Operations ATF the Irwin (Beerwah) Group Trading Trust

[2022] FWC 2517

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

CORRECTION TO DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.394—Unfair dismissal

Irene Cryer
v

Australia Zoo Operations ATF The Irwin (Beerwah) Group Trading Trust

(U2022/6279)

VICE PRESIDENT CATANZARITI

SYDNEY, 20 SEPTEMBER 2022

Application for an unfair dismissal remedy – Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) s.603 – revocation of decision [2022] FWC 2122 and order PR744670 – application to be reallocated.

On the 14^th of June 2022, the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) received an application from Irene Cryer (the applicant) for a remedy for unfair dismissal under s.394 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act), in respect of her employment with Australia Zoo Operations ATF The Irwin (Beerwah) Group Trading Trust (the respondent).

On the 13^th of July 2022, the respondent filed an F3 – Employer’s Response Form to Unfair Dismissal Application, which contained a different legal business name to the one mentioned by the applicant in her F2 – Unfair Dismissal Application.

On the 20^th of July 2022, correspondence was sent to the applicant addressing the issues with the legal business name discrepancy and was advised to respond by the 27^th of July 2022.

[4] It was at this point that the applicant was informed her application would be dismissed, should my Chambers not receive a response to the correspondence sent on the 20^th of July.

On the 12^th of August, a decision and order were published to dismiss the application from any further proceedings as no response was received.

After the decision was published on the 12^th of August 2022, the applicant had contacted my Chambers and it was in this telephone conversation that the applicant mentioned she had sent the correspondence to the incorrect email address.

An investigation into the correspondence was conducted and it was confirmed that the applicant had responded to the correspondence sent on the 20^th of July but was sent to the incorrect recipient.

In light of the above information, I have decided to revoke the decision and order published on the 12^th of August pursuant to s.603 of the Act. An order to that effect will issue with this decision.

The application will be reallocated to another Member for further proceedings.

VICE PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Irene Cryer filed an application for unfair dismissal against Australia Zoo Operations ATF The Irwin (Beerwah) Group Trading Trust, citing dissatisfaction with her termination. The Fair Work Commission (FWC) was tasked with reviewing the matter under the Fair Work Act 2009. Initially, the Commission dismissed Cryer's application due to her failure to respond to correspondence sent on 20 July 2022, which addressed discrepancies in the legal business name provided. Following the dismissal, Cryer argued that she had actually sent her response but to the wrong email address, leading to the non-receipt of her reply. This prompted an investigation which confirmed that Cryer had indeed responded, albeit to the incorrect recipient.

The legal issues central to this case revolved around whether Cryer's failure to respond to the correspondence was due to an administrative error or a genuine oversight, and whether the Commission's initial decision to dismiss her application was justified. Another key issue was whether the Commission had the authority to revoke its earlier decision and reallocate the case to another member for further proceedings.

The Vice President of the Fair Work Commission, Catanzariti, found that Cryer's response was sent but to the wrong address, indicating an administrative error rather than a failure to comply with the Commission's directives. Consequently, the Vice President decided to revoke the earlier decision to dismiss Cryer's application, and reallocated the case to another member for further consideration. This decision was made under section 603 of the Fair Work Act 2009, which provides the Commission with the power to revoke its earlier decisions and orders.

The final orders of the Commission included the revocation of the earlier decision and order dismissing Cryer's application and the reallocation of the case to another member for further proceedings. This ensures that Cryer's application for unfair dismissal will be reconsidered in light of the new information and procedural fairness.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established