Can You Be Fired Without a Warning? What the Fair Work Commission Says

Many employees believe their boss must give them at least one warning before they can be fired. But is that actually true under Australian unfair dismissal law?

The answer depends on the reason for the dismissal.

If the dismissal is due to poor performance, the Fair Work Commission generally expects that the employee was warned about the problem and given a chance to improve. In fact, failure to provide a warning is often a key reason why a dismissal is found to be unfair.

But if the dismissal is due to serious misconduct — like theft, assault, or a major safety breach — then a warning might not be required. In those cases, the Commission may accept that summary dismissal was reasonable.

Still, employers can get it wrong. Sometimes, what they call “serious misconduct” turns out to be a misunderstanding, or not serious enough to justify skipping the normal process. So, if you were accused of serious misconduct, but weren’t given a fair chance to respond, you may still have a claim.

If you think your dismissal wasn’t handled properly, it’s worth getting advice.