If you are party to a dispute being dealt with by the Fair Work Commission, you can respond to the application by downloading the correct form and sending it to us by email or fax.
Completed forms can be lodged by sending them to any of our Commission offices.
If you are an employer who is party to an unfair dismissal matter before the Commission, you have a right to reply to any allegations made against you.
Once an application for unfair dismissal remedy has been lodged you will be sent a copy of the application as well as a response form.
Only a Member of the Commission can determine whether the dismissal was unfair – an application does not automatically mean that you, as an employer, have done something wrong when dismissing an employee.
You will be invited to respond to the application in writing before the matter is discussed at conciliation. This gives you, as the employer, an opportunity to present your side of the story. Your response, as well as the employee's application, will be discussed at conciliation, and will be considered by a Member of the Commission if the matter proceeds to a hearing.
In responding to an application lodged against you, you can object to the application if:
If you object to an application the matter may be listed for what is called a 'jurisdiction hearing', where a Member of the Commission will determine whether the application should be allowed to continue.
To make an objection, complete Form F3 – Employer's response to application for unfair dismissal remedy, or Form F4 – objection to an application for unfair dismissal remedy.
See our Unfair dismissals benchbook for information on:
Read about Preparing for hearings & conferences
If you are an employer or principal who is party to a general protections dispute before the Commission, you have a right to reply to any allegations made against you.
Once an application to deal with a general protections dispute has been lodged you will be sent a copy of the application as well as a response form, and invited to respond in writing. Your response, as well as the application, will be considered by a Member of the Commission if the matter proceeds to a conference or hearing.
The Commission remains impartial in dispute matters; only a Member of the Commission can determine whether a contravention of general protections has occurred. Receiving an application does not automatically mean that you, as an employer, have done something wrong.
To respond to a general protections application, complete Form 8A – Response to General protections application.
If you are an employer who is party to an unlawful termination dispute before the Commission, you have a right to reply to any allegations made against you.
Once the employee has lodged an application to deal with an unlawful termination dispute you will be provided with a copy of their application as well as a response form, and invited to respond in writing. Your response, as well as your employee's application, will be considered by a Member of the Commission if the matter proceeds to a conference or hearing.
The Fair Work Commission remains impartial in dispute matters, only a Member of the Commission can determine whether an unlawful termination has occurred in your case. Receiving an application does not automatically mean that you, as an employer, have done something wrong.
To respond to an Unlawful termination application, complete Form 9A – Employer's response to an application for the Commission to deal with an Unlawful termination dispute.
These types of applications do not need a formal response form to be filled out and completed.
A copy of the application will be sent to you by the applicant as soon as possible after it has been received by the Commission. Once the application is allocated to a Member of the Commission, they will either:
If you believe that:
you can inform the Commission, and the applicant, in writing of your objection and the reasons for it. The Member will take this into account in dealing with the application.
Once a worker has made an application for an order to stop bullying at work, the Commission will ask for a response from:
Note that the Fair Work Commission remains impartial in anti-bullying matters. Any responses received, as well as the worker's application, will be considered by a Member of the Commission if the matter proceeds to a conference or hearing.
To respond to an application for an order to stop bullying, complete: