Alison Dee v Quayclean Australia Pty. Ltd. [2026] FWC 2763

1 Fair Work Act 2009 s.394—Unfair dismissal Alison Dee v Quayclean Australia Pty. Ltd. (U2026/8458) DEPUTY PRESIDENT BEAUMONT PERTH, 23 JULY 2026 Application for relief from unfair dismissal – minimum employment period – dismissal under s 587(1)(c) at the Commission’s initiative - application has no reasonable prospects of success Issue and outcome [1] On 2 July 2026, Alison Dee (the Applicant) made an unfair dismissal application (the Application) to the Fair Work Commission under s 394 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act). [2] For the following reasons I am satisfied that the Application has no reasonable prospects of success and should be dismissed. [3] In their Application, the Applicant indicated that they commenced employment with Quayclean Australia Pty. Ltd on 29 December 2025 and that they were notified of their dismissal on 12 June 2026. On the information provided by the Applicant, they were employed for approximately five and a half months. [4] Section 382 of the Act provides that a person is only eligible to make an unfair dismissal application if they have completed a minimum employment period before their dismissal. Section 383 defines the minimum employment period to be either six months or one year, depending on whether the Respondent was a small business employer at the time of the dismissal. On the information provided by the Applicant, the minimum employment period was six months. [5] Commission staff contacted the Applicant by email on 6 July 2026. The Applicant was informed that based upon the information in their Application, they had not completed the minimum employment period. The Applicant was also placed on notice that their Application was very likely to be dismissed without further notice if no response was received by 13 July 2026. [2026] FWC 2763 DECISION AND ORDER -- 1 of 3 -- [2026] FWC 2763 2 [6] The Applicant provided a response to the Commission on 7 July 2026 to dispute that the minimum employment was not met as follows: I signed my contract on the 18th December 2025, first date on a payslip [sic] was the 29th December 2025. I have attached a copy of my contract. I did not get dismissed from my job nor did I resign from my job. [7] My Chambers contacted the Applicant by email on 14 July 2026. The Applicant was informed that to be protected from unfair dismissal the Applicant needed to have been ‘dismissed’ (see s 386 of the Act). The Applicant was directed to confirm if they considered that they had been dismissed and was, in addition, informed that if they considered that they were not dismissed then I would consider the dismissal of their Application on the basis they were not protected from unfair dismissal. Further, the Applicant was informed that the minimum employment period commences on the commencement of ‘continuous service’ with the Respondent, therefore it does not commence when the employment contract is signed (see s 384 of the Act). The Applicant was provided with website links to further information regarding calculating the minimum employment period. [8] The Applicant was directed in the email to provide their response with respect to whether they considered they had been dismissed, the issue regarding the minimum employment period, and to provide any submissions regarding the potential dismissal of the Application, within a set period. The Applicant was put on notice that, absent receipt of their response within that timeframe, the Application would be dismissed without further notice. An SMS was sent to the Applicant’s nominated telephone number informing them that an important email had been sent and that their Application would be dismissed absent a response within the provided timeframe. To date, the Commission has received no response. Section 587 – general principles [9] Section 587 of the Act allows the Commission to dismiss an application on the Commission’s own initiative in the early stages of the proceedings. Protracted proceedings can be avoided when there is no reasonable prospect of an outcome other than the dismissal of the application. [1] The power under s 587 should be used with caution, particularly if the matter involves complex questions of fact or law (see generally Bond v Carbridge Pty Ltd [2024] FWC 1302 at [11]-[16] (‘Bond’)). An application should not be dismissed under s 587 unless it is very clear that there are no reasonable prospects of success. As such the power under s 587 is not available if there are disputed facts that could affect the outcome of the proceedings. [2] Importantly, applicants must be given a fair opportunity to show that their application does in fact have some reasonable prospects of success. Reasonable prospects of success [3] The Commission cannot consider the fairness of the Applicant’s dismissal until it is established that they are protected from unfair dismissal. -- 2 of 3 -- [2026] FWC 2763 3 [4] The information provided by the Applicant in their Application strongly indicates that they are not protected from unfair dismissal because they do not appear to have served the minimum employment period. [5] The Applicant had the opportunity to provide information that could show that they had in fact completed the minimum employment period. However, the Applicant has not provided any information that is consistent with them having done so. [6] The Applicant has had the opportunity to put their case for consideration on all matters material to the decision to dismiss the application under s 587 of the Act (see Bond at [15]- [16]), namely that the Applicant has not met the minimum employment period. [7] I am satisfied that the Application has no reasonable prospect of success within the meaning of s 587(1)(c) of the Act. It is therefore appropriate in the circumstances to dismiss the Application on the Commission’s own initiative using the facility available in s 587(3)(a). I make the following order: A. The application under s 394 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) made by Alison Dee on 2 July 2026 is dismissed. DEPUTY PRESIDENT Matter determined on the papers Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer <PR812390> -- 3 of 3 --