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Traffica summarily dismissed foreman Selwyn McDonald on site after a heated exchange with a director. The ERA accepted that Mr McDonald made serious disrespectful comments with racial connotations, but he was given no chance to answer before being fired.

Brandt Tractor removed sales manager Nicholas Pilcher from the workplace on 'special leave', took his phone and laptop and then dismissed him five days later over four bullying and harassment complaints. He was not given the underlying complaints, even in redacted form, or a genuine chance to answer them.

Emily Grinsted, Bunnings' New Zealand People and Culture Manager, brought five unjustified-disadvantage claims while remaining employed. The complaints concerned how criticisms were raised, information and duties, contractual obligations and a short-term incentive bonus.

Hai Zheng's employment dispute with JCD concerned whether he had resigned or whether employer breaches caused his departure, together with associated disadvantage and contractual claims. The ERA examined whether the employer's conduct made resignation a reasonably foreseeable consequence.

FVG, a structural engineer, challenged her suspension, the handling of bullying and performance concerns, and her eventual dismissal by YJN. The case required the ERA to separate several disadvantage allegations from the fairness of the final dismissal process.

Retail employee KCY complained of bullying linked to her Russian ethnicity, was placed on paid leave without proper consultation and directed to transfer stores immediately. She was later summarily dismissed over expired promotional gifts and disclosure of a back-office code.

Hamilton Zoo's former senior manager subjected zookeeper Ashleigh Sanders to intrusive personal contact, out-of-hours messages, requests for information about colleagues, favouritism and career-related pressure. She later resigned, long after that manager had left.

Long-serving school principal Regina Rasheed was suspended and dismissed after a series of complaints and governance interventions at Zayed College for Girls. The ERA examined the factual basis for the allegations, the fairness of the investigation and a second suspension imposed during the process.