A long-serving Brisbane CityCat staffer has lost her job after a workplace tribunal backed her employer’s decision to sack her following a year of heavy absences.
Jodie Daunis, who spent several years working as a customer service operator on Brisbane’s iconic ferries, was shown the door in July last year by transport giant Kelsian Group.
According to tribunal documents, Daunis took a staggering 114 sick days in one 12-month period.
The company concluded that her ongoing medical condition meant she could no longer reliably perform the job on the river.
Her health troubles began escalating around April 2024 when she developed deep vein thrombosis and began suffering recurrent blood clots, triggering inflammation and persistent pain.
Doctors referred her for surgery in November that year, but the procedure landed her on the public hospital waitlist after her insurance provider declined to cover it.
Then on April 6, 2025, Daunis was hospitalized with DVT and spent about a week away from work.
When she returned, she managed only two shifts before the pain made performing her duties difficult, the Fair Work Commission heard.
Later that same month, Daunis informed the company’s people and culture manager that both a vascular surgeon and a blood specialist had advised she remain off work for the next three months.
In June, she underwent an independent medical examination — but what that report actually meant soon became the subject of fierce disagreement.
Daunis and the Maritime Union of Australia argued the assessment indicated she could return to work after her planned surgery. Kelsian, however, interpreted the report very differently, saying it showed she could not perform the essential duties of her ferry role.
The company also maintained that allowing Daunis to work reduced hours would have created ripple effects across staff rosters, forcing other workers to fill the gaps.
By July 1, the situation reached breaking point. Kelsian terminated Daunis’ employment, stating it could not modify her role to accommodate the medical restrictions she faced.
She challenged the decision but the Fair Work Commission ultimately sided with the ferry operator.
Commissioner Chris Simpson ruled that the June medical report “fell well short” of proving Daunis would be able to return to her full duties any time soon.
“I do not accept that the (independent medical examination) report conclusively determined that Ms Daunis could fulfil the inherent requirements of her role in the future. I am satisfied that the evidence does not support such a conclusion.”
He also agreed with the company that its rostering system made reduced hours unrealistic.
“I accept, taking into account the nature of the working arrangements, and the impact on other staff, and cost to the respondent (Kelsian Group) in making accommodations as proposed for Ms Daunis that they are not practical or reasonable in this case and that there was no reasonable adjustment that could have been made to Ms Daunis’ role to accommodate her current or future incapacity given the nature of her role,” he said.
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