Fair Work Commission criticises employer for firing staffer over phone, email

An employer who sacked one of her staff has been criticised with the Fair Work Commission warning it should have been done face-to-face.

The industrial relations tribunal said workers shouldn’t be dismissed via phone or email except in rare circumstances.

The warning came as the FWC threw out an unfair dismissal case lodged by Anita Cachia, who was accused of bullying other staff at a Sydney beauty salon.

Isabel McLennan, the co-owner of Emerse Skin & Laser in Sydney's north, heard bullying complaints against Ms Cachia by other beauticians.

Ms Cachia was accused of being both pushing and barking orders at staff and being verbally and physically abusive, Fairfax reported.

Following an investigation, Ms McLennan complied with the Small Business Unfair Dismissal Code and Ms Cachia’s employment was terminated in an email and follow-up phone call.

The commission's deputy president Peter Sams upheld the termination decision but criticised the method in which it was done.

Mr Sams said unless there was a genuine risk of physical violence "dismissal should be conveyed face to face" and "to do otherwise is unnecessarily callous".

Ms McLennan called Ms Cachia in for a meeting to resolve the issue and paid her during the investigation.

She said she saw nothing on the Fair Work website that said the dismissal had to be done face-to-face.

"She was making two of the girls’ lives hell and she was being discriminatory," she said.

"What do you do? You have a duty of care towards everyone. When you have two people being bullied, you have to protect people."