Pikus Pty Limited t/as Banjo's Bakery v Bradica

Pikus Pty Limited, trading as Banjo’s Bakery, sought judicial review of an arbitrator’s determination concerning the compensation owed to Bradica, the worker. The dispute arose after Bradica sustained injuries that led to a total incapacity for work. The central issue was whether the arbitrator was correct in revoking a prior determination concerning the amount of weekly compensation and whether the failure of the worker to seek suitable employment was relevant in calculating the compensation under section 40 of the Workers Compensation Act 1987.

The court addressed two primary legal issues. First, it had to determine if the arbitrator correctly revoked the previous determination and if the new determination was appropriate. Second, it examined whether the worker's failure to seek suitable employment was a relevant factor in calculating compensation under section 40 of the Act. The court found that the arbitrator erred by not providing specific reasons for revoking the previous determination and by not considering the relevance of the worker’s failure to seek employment in the compensation calculation.

The court concluded that the arbitrator's decision to revoke the prior determination needed to be reviewed and the matter remitted for re-determination by a different arbitrator. The court also held that the failure of the worker to seek suitable employment was a relevant factor in the compensation calculation under section 40 of the Act. Consequently, the court revoked paragraph one of the arbitrator’s determination, confirmed paragraph two, and ordered the employer to pay the worker’s costs of the appeal.