A Sydney-based currency dealer was fired after he told his employer he was “working from home” when he was actually still on holiday in Singapore.
That was not the first time Charles Graham took working from home to time-zone-defying lengths. He had also previously worked from Bali while telling his manager he was at home waiting for a plumber to fix “recurring bathroom issues”.
Graham won an unfair dismissal case on Oct 7. But, apart from four weeks’ worth of backpay, he walked away empty-handed.
Australia’s Fair Work Commission determined that he did, in fact, lie because he was aware he was violating office policies, The Guardian reported. His company – HIFX Australia, trading as Xe – erred, however, in not following due process in dismissing him, the commission found.
Xe fired Graham on Dec 2, 2025, after his company traced his work laptop to a hotel in Singapore when he was supposed to be working from home in Sydney on Nov 17.
Fair Work commissioner Alana Matheson ruled that Graham deliberately hid his location, and that Xe had a valid reason to dismiss him. But she said the company failed to fully explain the case against him or give him a proper opportunity to respond.
Graham had asked Xe in September 2025 if he could work in Singapore for a year. But the company refused, saying his role was based in Sydney, and it did not have a licence to operate in Singapore.
Graham went on working from home for weeks, citing an eye injury. He then used his annual leave and went on a holiday.
Graham was due back at work in November. On Nov 17, his manager, Abigail Plummer, contacted IT.
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