Channel 7 and former presenter Simon Reeve have completely different views about whether he was an employee or a contractor when he was axed earlier this year, a court has heard.
The TV star is suing the Seven Network and seeking more than $500,000, his lawyer John Laxon told the Federal Court of Australia in Sydney on Thursday.
Reeve last appeared on Weekend Sunrise in early 2020 and worked two more jobs – ANZAC Day commemorations and Brisbane COVID-19 restrictions easing – before he was unceremoniously let go.
THE CASE COMES BEFORE THE COURT
The 59-year-old has filed a statement of claim in the Federal Court alleging a breach of his contract and misrepresentation as to his employment.
Justice Geoffrey Flick asked Mr Laxon on Thursday: “What’s the misrepresentation?”
“That as from April 2002 until his termination – the applicant’s termination in about June this year – Reeve properly characterised by law was in fact an employee of Seven and not an independent contractor as characterised by Seven,” the lawyer replied.
The judge, presiding over the first case management hearing held via videoconference, asked: “What sort of money are we talking about if you’re totally successful?”
“In excess of half a million dollars, Your Honour,” Mr Laxon said, later adding that it could be up to one million.
The sum includes what Reeve claims is unpaid redundancy pay, damages for breach of contract and compensation.
Justice Flick said the figure was “worthwhile fighting over”.
“Channel 7 must pay well,” he said.
Simon Reeve Productions Pty Limited (SRP) is the second applicant on the court documents.
Reeve wants the network to declare the contracts entered into between Seven and SRP contravened the Fair Work Act “in that they falsely represented that Reeve was employed as independent contractor”.
Barrister Yaseen Shariff, for the Seven Network, referred to it as a company “established voluntarily” by Reeve.
He said any mediation between them in the early stages of the legal process would be “premature” given the “diametrically opposed positions that the parties take”.
Mr Shariff said Reeve’s claims were “ambitious”.
WHY IS REEVE SUING SEVEN?
Reeve is seeking declarations from Seven that he was an employee according to law for the purposes of the Fair Work Act, that they failed to provide annual leave payments, failed to provide notice and failed to provide redundancy pay.
“It was an implied term of the ongoing contract that Seven would provide Reeve with reasonable notice of termination,” his statement of claim, obtained by news.com.au, reads.
“Reasonable notice for Reeve as at 25 June 2020 given his age, seniority and length of service, was not less than 12 months’ notice of termination.”
It contends Seven “did not give Reeve notice of termination, or payment in lieu of notice” and further claims – from in or about 2016 – Seven failed to provide him with a pay slip “within one day of paying amounts to him in relation to the performance of work, or at all”.
Reeve is claiming 12 months’ salary in lieu of termination notice provided by the network, compensation for the failure to pay him annual leave and redundancy, interest and costs.
He claims emails he received in July 2020 from network chairman and billionaire Kerry Stokes and Seven West Media chief operations officer Bruce McWilliam are evidence of being “treated as an employee of Seven by other officers and employees of Seven”, along with being “held out as a representative of Seven” by the use of his image in promotional material.
In an email on July 3, Stokes referred to Reeve as having just “been made redundant”.
“I’m so sorry,” he said.
That same day, Mr McWilliam emailed Reeve to say he was “part of the DNA of this place since before I can remember”.
In another email on July 16, he wrote: “You’ll leave a big hole as you’ve been part of the weekend line up for so long. Won’t be the same without you as you’re part of our DNA.”
DECADES SPENT AT THE NETWORK
Reeve has worked with Seven on and off over the last four decades, starting as a Perth-based sports producer and reporter in 1979.
He rejoined the network in the early 2000s, providing Olympics commentary in 2004 and 2008 and hosting quiz show Million Dollar Minute and children’s game show It’s Academic.
On March 16 this year, Weekend Sunrise producer Matt McGrane told the sports presenter “to cease performing services”, according to his statement of claim.
The papers claim the direction, on behalf of Seven, was “express and oral in a telephone call”.
He was called by Sunrise executive producer Michael Pell on behalf of Seven on June 25.
“Reeve was notified of the termination of his engagement by reason of his role no longer being required to be performed by him or by anyone,” the court papers, filed by Reeve, state.
His case will return to court in seven weeks with any cross-claim and defence to the cross-claim to be filed by that date.
“In other words, if there is to be a cross-claim, let’s flush it out,” Justice Flick said on Thursday.
“We can reassess which way to jump on the 11th of November.”
He warned the parties they were “probably going to face mediation”.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMilAFodHRwczovL3d3dy5uZXdzLmNvbS5hdS9lbnRlcnRhaW5tZW50L3R2L3NpbW9uLXJlZXZlLWZvcm1lci1jaGFubmVsLTctcHJlc2VudGVyLWlzLXNlZWtpbmctNTAway1pbi1jb3VydC9uZXdzLXN0b3J5L2M2YjljODdhMDhhMTUxOWI5NDhkNmFkZDA2YjliMmYx0gGUAWh0dHBzOi8vYW1wLm5ld3MuY29tLmF1L2VudGVydGFpbm1lbnQvdHYvc2ltb24tcmVldmUtZm9ybWVyLWNoYW5uZWwtNy1wcmVzZW50ZXItaXMtc2Vla2luZy01MDBrLWluLWNvdXJ0L25ld3Mtc3RvcnkvYzZiOWM4N2EwOGExNTE5Yjk0OGQ2YWRkMDZiOWIyZjE?oc=5
2020-09-24 00:56:15Z
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