From Flat White to Flat Out of a Job
A 66-year-old employee (with 27 years’ service) was invited by his manager for a coffee at their usual café, only to be told, in public, that his employment would end on 31 December (six months later).
The manager was planning a restructure and didn’t see the employee as part of its future, but didn’t make it clear in discussions whether the employee was being replaced or retrenched.
The news made the employee feel “helpless and sick in the stomach”. He never returned to work and claimed workers’ compensation for psychological injury. The employer argued that an informal café chat was a “sensitive” approach, but the NSW Personal Injury Commission ruled it was unreasonable and breached redundancy policies.
The employer was ordered to pay eight months’ compensation plus medical costs.
Take Out Point: Don’t have life changing conversations in a coffee shop. Just don’t.
See: Khan v Hitachi Energy Australia Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPIC 22 (28 January 2025)