Sodexo Remote Sites Australia Pty Ltd

Sodexo Remote Sites Australia Pty Ltd was the subject of an application seeking variation of redundancy pay. The case was heard in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia. The applicant, a former employee of the company, sought to have their redundancy payment recalculated in accordance with a different interpretation of the relevant legislative provisions. The dispute centred on the application of section 26 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) and the calculation of the redundancy payment, particularly the appropriate base period for determining the weekly ordinary earnings.

The court was tasked with determining whether the redundancy payment should be calculated based on the employee's weekly earnings over a 12-month period or a 26-week period, as argued by the applicant. The employer contended that the statutory formula provided for the 12-month period was the correct approach. The court considered the legislative language, relevant case law, and the purpose behind the statutory provisions to resolve this issue.

In its judgment, the court held that the correct approach was to calculate the redundancy payment based on the employee's weekly earnings over the 12-month period. The court found that the plain language of the statute and the purpose behind the redundancy pay provisions supported this interpretation. Consequently, the court dismissed the application for variation of the redundancy payment. The court's decision was based on the principle that the statutory formula should be applied as written, unless there were compelling reasons to do otherwise, which were not present in this case.