June 2026
Jim* worked as a licensed electrician in Australia. He is not an Australian resident.
While on a holiday overseas, Jim was in an accident causing a serious break to his upper arm.
Jim returned to his home country for treatment, because he was not covered by Medicare. This resulted in Jim taking more time off from work.
After treatment, Jim came back to Australia. He was certified well enough to return to work with some minor limitations. The employer was dissatisfied with the limitations and insisted that Jim could not return to work until his capacity was at 100%, despite a specialist report that Jim was fit for pre-injury duties. The employer later decided to terminate his employment on the same day that he was declared fit to resume duties without restrictions.
Jim made a disability discrimination complaint to Anti-Discrimination NSW (ADNSW), who investigated the matter.
Following investigation by ADNSW, the matter was settled at a conciliation conference held on Microsoft Teams. Jim accepted a negotiated settlement payment against his claim for loss of wages and unlawful termination, without admission of unlawful conduct by the employer.
*Name has been changed to protect the privacy of the individual.
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