Yammouni v Therexa Pty Ltd ATF the Heath Family Trust Trading as Activate Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates

In *Yammouni v Therexa Pty Ltd ATF the Heath Family Trust Trading as Activate Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates*, the applicant, Laura Yammouni, brought a claim against the respondent, Activate Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates, concerning alleged unpaid redundancy pay and unauthorised deductions from her final pay. The matter was heard in the Small Claims Division.

The court was required to determine whether the applicant was owed redundancy pay and whether the respondent was legally permitted to make deductions from her final remuneration. A key issue was whether the applicant's employment had been validly terminated and if the proposed transition to an independent contractor arrangement altered her entitlements.

Judge Kendall found that the applicant was entitled to redundancy pay. The court reasoned that the respondent's actions, including purporting to terminate the applicant's employment and proposing a contractor arrangement without finalising the terms or providing a written agreement, did not effectively alter the applicant's employment status from that of an employee. The respondent's attempt to deduct training costs from the applicant's final pay was also found to be unlawful, as these deductions were made without the applicant's consent or agreement.

The court ordered that the respondent pay the applicant redundancy pay and reimburse the unlawfully deducted training costs.