Jonathan Stamatelos

Senior Associate

Melbourne, Australia

Jonathan is an employment lawyer with a focus on industrial disputes, enterprise bargaining and employment litigation.

Jonathan assists clients in a broad range of employment and industrial relations matters, both in a litigious and general advisory context. He has a particular interest in assisting clients faced with industrial action, bargaining disputation and enterprise agreement disputes, with an emphasis on finding and implementing practical solutions. Jonathan regularly appears in the Fair Work Commission in these circumstances on behalf of clients.

Jonathan is also an experienced employment litigator. Jonathan regularly defends clients in unfair dismissal proceedings in the Fair Work Commission, general protections claims in the Federal Court of Australia, discrimination claims in various courts and tribunals, and acts in employment related contractual disputes.

Jonathan has worked as in-house legal counsel on secondments to Metro Trains Melbourne (Senior Lawyer; Acting Head of Workplace Relations), Lendlease Building (Legal Counsel) and Uber (Senior Employment Counsel), and is highly regarded for his ability to meet client needs and be a trusted advisor to clients.

Jonathan has been recognised in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch (2022–2026) and has been a finalist in the Lawyers Weekly 30 Under 30 Awards (2019–2021).

Jonathan also leads HSF Kramer’s IRIS Network in Melbourne.

Experience & capabilities

Selected matters

acting in various enterprise agreement private arbitration disputes in the Fair Work Commission relating to enterprise agreement pay compliance, rostering, major workplace change, and supplementary labour matters, including appearances in conference and arbitration;
representing a major transport operator in urgent Fair Work Commission interlocutory proceedings concerning status quo obligations arising from the implementation of major workplace change;
representing an employer in the Fair Work Commission to suspend protected industrial action due to significant third-party harm;
defending multiple general protections claims commenced in the Federal Court of Australia, including successfully running these matters through to trial and on appeal before the Full Court of the Federal Court;
representing employers in anti-bullying, discrimination, unfair dismissal claims before the Fair Work Commission and Federal Courts;
leading bargaining for a tier-one construction company across a number of their enterprise agreements across Australia;
conducting sensitive workplace investigations on behalf of employers;
advising on and attending a major pharmaceutical employer’s premise during weeks of unlawful pickets;
representing employers and liaising with the Fair Work Ombudsman in underpayment investigations;
advising on all employment aspects of numerous major Australian M&A transactions, including advice on Australia’s transfer of business laws.