Labour Court sets aside SEDA suspension complaint decision

The Labour Court allowed Seda (Skills & Enterprise Development Academy) Limited’s appeal and set aside the decision on Melissa Angarita Cardenas’s complaint under the Terms of Employment (Information) Act. The determination was dated 19 July 2023. Ms Angarita Cardenas argued that her suspension was linked to an earlier Workplace Relations Commission complaint. SEDA said it suspended her after she printed confidential student information and forwarded work emails to her personal account while on sick leave. The Court criticised SEDA’s handling of the disciplinary process, including arranging a meeting at short notice without explaining its purpose or her right to be accompanied. It found that poor practice alone did not establish penalisation and that the suspension followed Ms Angarita Cardenas’s actions. It found no evidence linking the suspension to her WRC complaint.