Journalist Antoinette Lattouf takes ABC to trial over unfair dismissal claims
Presenter and journalist Antoinette Lattouf will face off against the national broadcaster at trial after attempts at mediation failed.
Presenter Antoinette Lattouf has declared she “will not stop” as her unfair dismissal case against the national broadcaster heads to trial.
Earlier this month, the Fair Work Commission determined the journalist had been fired by the ABC when she was taken off air after sharing a social media post about the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Ms Lattouf was sent home three days into a five-day stint on ABC Radio’s Sydney Mornings program in December last year.
She claims she was unlawfully terminated after sharing a post on social media by Human Rights Watch with a caption which read: “HRW reporting starvation as a tool of war”.
The journalist and her former employer met in the Federal Court on Tuesday for a mediation session to determine whether the unfair dismissal lawsuit could be resolved before heading to trial.
However, Ms Lattouf took to social media after less than two hours later to reveal the attempt had failed.
“Mediation has failed today which is incredibly disheartening,” she wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
“Despite how hard this has been on me and how unfair it is, let me be clear – I WILL NOT STOP.”
In the impassioned post, Ms Lattouf vowed to continue to advocate for press freedom and human rights.
Mediation was unsuccessful today which was incredibly disheartening. pic.twitter.com/m1ZBQJBhvb
— Antoinette Lattouf (@antoinette_news) June 25, 2024
“I won’t stop fighting for a brave and independent ABC, a public broadcaster that doesn’t bow to lobby groups,” the journalist pledged.
In a letter sent to ABC management and published in the Fair Work Commission judgment, Ms Lattouf said she was told her post breached the company’s social media policies.
She also claimed she was told “that Jewish lobbyists were unhappy that I was on air”.
Ms Lattouf believes she was dismissed for expressing a political opinion and because of her race.
She is suing the ABC for dismissing her “without a proper basis and due process” in contravention of its employee enterprise agreement.
On Tuesday, the journalist said she was “buoyed by and grateful for so much public support” as well as support from her peers and the media union.
She has started a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for her legal fees ahead of the court fight.
The ABC declined to comment on the matter.
The mediation was recorded by the Federal Court as finalised but not resolved.
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