Emailing pornography to colleagues not a sackable offence
Three employees of the Australia Post who were sacked for sending pornography around the Dandenong Letter Centre have been found to have been unfairly dismissed by the Australian Fair Work Commission.
Not misconduct to which special rules apply
The decision rules that the common workplace policy of dismissing staff for such practices is “inconsistent with basic principle”, and in effect means that sending pornographic emails at work is not an automatic sackable offence in Australia.
"There is an emerging trend in the decided cases towards regarding the accessing, sending or receiving and storing of pornography by an employee as a form of serious misconduct that invariably merits termination of employment," the decision stated.
"Such a proposition is inconsistent with basic principle. Accessing, sending or receiving and storing pornography is not a separate species of misconduct to which special rules apply."
Email attachment image via Shutterstock