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Excerpts from this article first published in ‘Human Resources’ Magazine, Issue 111, 22 August 2006
In the recent decision of Nikolich v Goldman Sachs J B Were Services Pty Ltd, the Federal Court considered whether various policies had been incorporated into an investment advisor’s contract of employment.
Justice Wilcox found that the advisor’s employment ended on 7 December 2004 following a long-running dispute over allegations that he was mistreated by his supervisor in relation to issues relating to the re-allocation of clients. The investment advisor alleged that his supervisor’s attitude was intimidating, threatening and made him feel stressed at home and at work. Unfortunately, due to the mistreatment by the supervisor and the employer’s mishandling of the complaints (which involved ignoring its own policies), the advisor suffered from a major depressive disorder.
Justice Wilcox determined that the employer had breached certain obligations in company policies and that these policies had been incorporated into the advisor’s contract of employment. The relevant breaches included the employer not providing the advisor with the promised safe working environment, breaching the stated obligation to treat each employee with respect and courtesy and breaching the stated obligation to carry out an adequate and timely investigation into any complaint or grievance.
The advisor was awarded $305,000 and interest in relation to his loss of income caused by his major depressive disorder. He was also awarded an amount relating to lost future earnings as it was anticipated that it would take some time to obtain new employment. A further $80,000 was awarded relating to impact upon his personal life and reputation.
Although this decision is currently on appeal, there are some valuable points for HR professionals to consider.
HR Tips
Lucinda Frantz, Senior Associate
