Antoinette Lattouf was sacked by the ABC, Fair Work Commission says

The Fair Work Commission dismissed the ABC’s argument Lattouf’s employment was not ‘terminated’ and the matter can now proceed to the Federal Court.

ABC Sydney fill-in presenter Antoinette Lattouf was sacked by the public broadcaster over her use of social media, the Fair Work Commission has resolved.

In a decision published on Monday, the Commission’s deputy president Gerard Boyce dismissed the ABC’s argument that Lattouf’s employment was not ‘terminated’ and the matter can now proceed to the Federal Court.

Maurice Blackburn employment lawyer Josh Bornstein, who is representing Lattouf, posted on X on Monday and said the Commission has “comprehensively rejected the ABC’s jurisdictional challenge to her unlawful termination case which can now proceed to the Federal Court.”

The Fair Work Commission has decided that the ABC sacked @antoinette_news . It has comprehensively rejected the ABC’s jurisdictional challenge to her unlawful termination case which can now proceed to the Federal Court.

— Josh Bornstein (@JoshBBornstein) June 3, 2024

Lattouf, a Lebanese-Australian, was appointed as a fill-in radio host for mornings host Sarah Macdonald from Monday, December 18, but she was sacked after completing just three of her five shifts.

In her FWC claim, Lattouf alleges she was unlawfully terminated for breaching the ABC’s social media guidelines after sharing a post by Human Rights Watch about the war that read: “The Israeli government is using starvation of civilians as a weapon of war in Gaza.”

Fair Work Commission documents stated that the ABC’s chief content officer Chris Oliver-Taylor made the decision that she should not perform her remaining two shifts after he was notified of her social media use.

Journalist Antoinette Lattouf. Source: Instagram.

Mr Bornstein said in a statement on Monday: “We will add the claim of unlawful termination to the claim currently before the Federal Court that alleges that the ABC also violated its enterprise agreement by sacking Antoinette Lattouf without due process and without a proper basis.

“If the court is satisfied that the ABC acted illegally it has broad powers to make orders including reinstatement and compensation together with the ability to impose penalties.”

Mr Bornstein also said ABC Sydney’s acting station manager Mark Spurway told Lattouf after her first shift filling in that she was “sounding great” and the audience was “responding very well.

But in a statement issued by the ABC on Monday night it said: “The ABC maintains that it acted on the basis of a belief that Ms Lattouf had not complied with a direction in relation to her use of social media.”

The ABC also said it “has not acted on the basis of Ms Lattouf’s political opinion, race and/or national extraction or social origin.”

The media union, the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance posted on X shortly after Mr Boyce’s decision was published and said the result was “an important outcome for the right of journalists to do their jobs with #NoFearNoFavour. #MEAAmedia.”

Congratulations to @antoinette_news for standing your ground when you were unfairly dismissed by the ABC. This is an important outcome for the right of journalists to do their jobs with #NoFearNoFavour. #MEAAmediahttps://t.co/XXatplL0cY

— MEAA (@withMEAA) June 3, 2024