Worker’s $1.8m compensation claim over ‘serial farter’ supervisor

A Melbourne engineer who claims his colleague repeatedly farted near him and “thrusted his bum” at him is hoping his bullying claim is successful on appeal.

David Hingst, 56, had sought $1.8 million in a suit against his former employer Construction Engineering, but a Supreme Court judge threw the case out last year, finding there was no bullying.

Mr Hingst had alleged that this supervisor’s actions amounted to a “complex conspiracy” to “marginalise him and terminate his employment”. This resulted, it was claimed, in Mr Hingst suffering psychiatric injuries.

Mr Hingst launched an appeal and it came before the Court of Appeal on Monday, when he told the panel of judges that “flatulence was a form of bullying” and his ex-colleague Greg Short was a serial farter.

In a blog post on legal analysis website Lexology, BAL Lawyers’ John Wilson said intentional flatulence was often cited as evidence of workplace bullying.

“However you say it – flatulence, bum sneezes, letting one rip or plain old farting – it is (usually) an involuntary act that is met with embarrassment,” he said.

“So it may surprise some readers to learn that intentional farts are in fact frequently cited as sources of workplace grievances and evidence of bullying. Not only are accusations levelled that a colleague farted in their general direction, it is often the case that someone farted in their specific direction.”

AAP