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An employer's adverse action defence has fallen down over its failure to confirm which HR professional recommended a final warning for an employee's misconduct.

In February 2020, the University of Melbourne employee – who undertook research and supervised students in the Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience – was dismissed on the grounds of redundancy.

She subsequently claimed before the Federal Circuit Court that the employer had taken four adverse actions against her because she'd made workplace complaints.

The Court heard that in early 2018, the employee's then supervisor raised concerns about her performance, specifically regarding the level of research funding she had attracted and her interactions with colleagues...