WRC recommends worker use employer’s grievance process in bullying dispute

The Workplace Relations Commission recommended that a worker engage with her employer’s investigation and follow its grievance procedure after finding she had not exhausted that process. The recommendation was dated 14 February 2024. The worker, a sushi chef, alleged bullying and harassment by her line manager and said she was afraid to raise a complaint. The employer denied the allegations and said it first learned of them when she referred the dispute to the WRC. The officer found that the worker knew about the grievance procedure but had not escalated her complaint through it before taking the dispute to the WRC. The recommendation asks her to engage meaningfully with the investigation and use the internal process; it does not determine whether the alleged bullying and harassment occurred.