Peter van Onselen named in Federal Court application made by Network 10 journalist

A political reporter has launched court action against Network 10, alleging it engaged in unlawful conduct that breached the Fair Work Act.

Network 10 political editor Peter van Onselen is among a number of senior employees referred to in a Federal Court pleading action filed by political reporter Tegan George.

The application will allege Network 10 engaged in unlawful conduct that breached the Fair Work Act.

George, who has worked at the network’s Canberra bureau since 2019 but has been on leave since mid-2021, filed the action in the Federal Court on Monday with her legal representative Josh Bornstein.

The statement of claim and originating application have not yet been made public, but NCA NewsWire has confirmed van Onselen – who regularly appears on The Project and is a contributing editor at The Australian – is one of a number of employees referred to in the pleading.

The nature of the reference to van Onselen is not yet clear. He has not been named as a defendant in the proceedings.

Network 10 has said they will not be commenting on the matter, but the network will be due to file a defence to the case at a later date.