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‘An insult to his culture’: Italian chef sacked for not putting pineapple on pizza loses bid to get job back

By · Via The Guardian · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Fair Work Commission Commissioner Jennifer Hunt dismissed Davide Tamburella's general protections bid because he missed the required filing deadline. The tribunal heard that Tamburella repeatedly refused to prepare pineapple pizzas, including one requested for an event valued at over $15,000, citing cultural objections alongside claims regarding a fractured hand. The termination dealt a significant blow to his immigration status, compelling him to restart an employer-sponsored 186 visa process. Tamburella has since found a position at another Italian eatery that excludes pineapple, while his former workplace has ceased operations entirely.

Key points

  • Commissioner Jennifer Hunt dismissed the general protections application because it was s…: Commissioner Jennifer Hunt dismissed the general protections application because it was submitted past the established deadline.
  • The dismissal forced the chef to restart an employer-sponsored permanent residency visa p…: The dismissal forced the chef to restart an employer-sponsored permanent residency visa process spanning over three years.
  • Tamburella has secured new employment at an Italian restaurant that does not include pine…: Tamburella has secured new employment at an Italian restaurant that does not include pineapple on its menu.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

With its sea foam-green and white decor, exposed brick columns and “classic Italian dishes” served atop European oak tables, La Costa was billed as an elegant slice of Italy in the urban heart of Queensland, Australia’s sunshine state.

“We promise, it’ll only take a moment to realize you’re not in Brisbane anymore, you’ve made it to the Italian Riviera,” the now closed restaurant’s website still reads.

But for its disgruntled former head chef, it seems, just one moment – or, more specifically, one ingredient – was all it took to break the spell conjuring the “luxurious splendor of Italy’s coastline” and to plonk his diners right back into the nightclub district of Queensland’s Fortitude Valley.

That ingredient was pineapple. On a pizza.

A Fair Work Commission ruling filed on Tuesday heard that Davide Tamburella was sacked from La Costa on 20 May this year, a fortnight after he was hauled before his boss, Elliot Ingram, “to address performance concerns”.

Among those concerns was the Italian chef’s refusal to put pineapple on pizza – on the grounds that to do so…

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