Journalist seeks big penalty after illegal ABC sacking
A journalist illegally sacked for sharing reports Israel was using starvation as a weapon of war wants the ABC fined enough to stop it from axing other vocal staff.
Antoinette Lattouf
The ABC could be fined hundreds of thousands of dollars for unlawfully terminating broadcaster Antoinette Lattouf over a social media post.
Sacked from her casual role on ABC Radio Sydney’s Mornings program in 2023, Lattouf won an unlawful termination case in the Federal Court in June.
She and the public broadcaster return to court on Wednesday to argue what the ABC should be fined.
The court has awarded Lattouf $70,000 in damages for being dismissed three days into a five-day casual radio stint, following a co-ordinated campaign of complaints from pro-Israel lobbyists.
Lattouff, who has Lebanese heritage, shared a Human Rights Watch post saying Israel was using starvation as a “weapon of war” in Gaza before her position was terminated.
Justice Darryl Rangiah found the ABC breached employment law by dismissing the journalist for reasons that included her political opinion.
Lattouf says her team would argue for “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in penalties.
She claimed the ABC had said between $37,000 and $56,000 was fair.
“A penalty hearing isn’t just punishment – it’s deterrence,” Ms Lattouf posted on X on Sunday.
“In theory, the court sends a broader message that breaking workplace laws won’t come cheap and ensures offenders don’t treat it as a business expense … without deterrence, a penalty is just words on paper.”
The ABC has been contacted for comment.
Any fine would pale against the legal costs the ABC has racked up defending the case.
Lattouf offered to settle the case for $85,000 in August 2024, according to her lawyer Josh Bornstein, along with other conditions including an apology and another five radio shifts.
But ABC managing director Hugh Marks previously said the extra radio slots were a sticking point because they could compromise editorial independence to external influence.
Justice Rangiah found the broadcaster was under pressure from an orchestrated campaign of complaints against Lattouf by a pro-Israel lobbyist group at the time of the sacking.
The ABC did not give her the chance to defend the allegations and instead showed her the door, the judge found.
AAP
She’s a rabid antisemite – the ABC charter argues for balanced views, Lattouf did and does not conform to balanced views.
Her sacking was undeniably correct, the judgement was unreasonable, and she should not have received a cent.