Last year, Jamie Gwen Hammond, an 18-year-old bartender, was fired from a gaming club for taking unclaimed pokie winnings. Now, he has been awarded a generous compensation settlement worth $13 000, as the Employment Relations Authority decided that he was unfairly dismissed from the position. The incident in question took place in December 2011.

A patron had visited the cash desk to request that her winnings, worth $24 in change, be changed to notes. When Ms Hammond turned her back, the patron had disappeared, leaving the winnings with the barstaff. The law requires pubs and clubs to give all unclaimed winnings to Pub Charity, so that it may be distributed amongst local community organizations.

However, Hammond pocketed the winnings, claiming that her former manager, who is being called Ms X. in the media, instructed her to do so. She offered to split the money with another staff member, who refused because she ‘felt uncomfortable’. Shortly after this, the pub’s boss dismissed Hammond. While the head of the venue felt that Ms. Hammond had acted inappropriately, he did not conduct a thorough enough investigation.

The former employee was instructed by Ms X to split all unclaimed winnings as a staff bonus at the end of the night; however, this fact was overlooked at the time of Ms. Hammond’s dismissal. She decided to take her case to the Employment Relations Authority, stating that she had been unfairly dismissed. After months of deliberation, the authority sided with Ms. Hammond, awarding her compensation for lost wages and suffering.

"She followed what she believed to be the correct practice in such a case," says David Appleton, a member of the Employment Relationships Authority. In addition to receiving $6217 for wages that she had lost, Ms. Hammond has also been awarded $7500 for humiliation. She claims that her father had stopped talking to her, and that she could not hold down another service job due to her employers being suspicious of her actions.

Now, her name has been cleared , thanks to a fair ruling from the employment authority.

About the Author

George Anderson
Author George, has over 25+ years’ experience in the Pokies and Casinos industry throughout Australia and New Zealand. Loves to research new Pokies games on the block and follows announcements from top industry providers about their upcoming releases. As soon as a new interesting pokie game appears on his radar, George is there to check it out and give you the scoop before anyone else and tell you about all casino sites where can play the latest game. Before this gig, George worked as Pokie game tester, making him an ideal candidate for this genre of work. He is also an animal lover and a proud owner of three dogs.