Australian Bank Employee Wins Landmark Right to Work from Home Daily

Karlene Chandler, a part-time Westpac employee, won a landmark Fair Work Commission ruling that grants her the right to work from home full-time, challenging Westpac's policy requiring her to attend the office two days a week. Chandler, who has worked for Westpac for 23 years and lives about 70 km from Sydney, initially requested flexible work arrangements to manage childcare responsibilities, but the bank rejected her requests, including an alternative proposal to work from a local branch closer to her home. The Commission found Westpac did not comply with mandatory requirements to genuinely discuss and try to reach an agreement on flexible work arrangements and ruled there was no reasonable ground to refuse her request. This decision highlights the potential difficulty employers may face in enforcing return-to-office mandates when existing flexible work agreements are in place. Westpac stated it is reviewing the ruling and emphasized its return-to-office policies aim to balance team collaboration with flexibility. The case is seen as pivotal for flexible work rights within Australia's financial sector amid ongoing debates about hybrid work models.