‘Nobody is ever going to hire me’: Sacked WFH Aussie breaks silence

A WFH employee who was sacked after her boss tracked her computer activity has revealed she fears “never” getting hired again.

Chloe Whelan

less than 2 min read

August 10, 2023 - 1:49AM

Suzie Cheiko, who was fired after barely working from home, has broken her silence. Picture: LinkedIn.

A WFH employee who was sacked after her boss tracked her computer activity has revealed she has turned to Centrelink and fears “never” getting hired again.

Suzie Cheiko, 38, worked for Insurance Australia Group for 18 years before she was given a formal warning about her performance and output in November 2022.

She was put on a performance improvement plan and her keyboard strokes were monitored on 49 working days between October and December.

Suzie Cheiko, 38, worked for IAG for 18 years before she was fired. Picture: LinkedIn.

Ms Cheiko was fired on February 20 for missing deadlines and meetings, being absent and uncontactable and failing to complete a task which caused the industry regulator to fine IAG. The Fair Work Commission upheld IAG’s decision to sack her, as revealed by news.com.au this week.

The FWC heard Ms Cheiko didn’t work her rostered hours on 44 of the 49 tracked days, started late on 47 days, finished early on 29 days and performed zero hours of work on 4 days.

Now, Ms Cheiko has shared her fears she may never be employed again.

“It’s embarrassing that this story has gone viral — nobody is going to hire me,” the Sydneysider told the Daily Mail.

“In 18 years of work there I only ever got one warning,” she said.

Ms Cheiko revealed she was getting by on welfare and received her first Centrelink payment this month.

But the unwanted spotlight has helped to boost her online profile since getting the sack. She’s pivoted to become something of a microinfluencer, with almost 8000 followers on TikTok.

“I make a small percentage of money off TikTok — just enough to cover my bills,” she said

“It’s all to do with my mental health, you see. I’m an advocate because of the mental health issues I have suffered, so I raise awareness by talking about it on ‘lives’.”