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A Fair Work Commission full bench has dismissed a stop s-xual harassment appeal, finding a disgruntled worker was seeking to agitate historical grievances.

The Rio Tinto tug engineer was hired in 2005, accused of misconduct in 2018, and then quit in 2019. At that time, Rio Tinto decided the employee wouldn't be allowed to perform work at any of its sites in future, due to allegations of safety-related conduct.

Early this year the employee applied for orders to stop bullying or sexual harassment, but Commissioner Sarah McKinnon found that because he was no longer a 'worker' nor 'at work', there was no foreseeable risk of further bullying or harassment.

However she noted that the employee did "appear to have been exposed to conduct of a sexual nature while at work for Rio Tinto" in July 2017, which "could readily be described as sexual harassment". She encouraged the employer to "properly investigate" the incident, which was recorded on CCTV, and take appropriate action...