A former employee of retailer Modestie Boutique has been awarded $9,992 after Fair Work Australia judged her dismissal by text as "harsh, unjust and unreasonable". Sedina Sokolovic was sacked by text message after her boss complained she had swapped shifts without permission and was late for work. "That shows me you not taking me serious or the work," Modestie director Sophia Sarkis texted. "Which hurts me enough and you can pick up your pay tomorrow and drop the key. You don't need to call me and I don't see that we can work together." Sokolovic, who worked at the store in Liverpool, Sydney for two years, yesterday told The Age she could not believe she had been sacked by text two days after she had swapped shifts. She was upset she had not had a chance to respond. "I was just stunned. What happened wasn't right," she said. The reasons given in the text message did not include any "serious misconduct" that would justify an instant dismissal, and none were provided later at the Fair Work Australia hearing, the tribunal found. Firing Sokolovic by text also denied her a chance to respond or explain the circumstances that had led to her sacking. Commissioner Ian Cambridge was also critical of the way the sacking occurred, saying he was inclined to agree with the comments of Sokolovic's lawyer, Adrian Barwick, that it was a "pretty appalling" way to dismiss someone. Cambridge said it suggested a "lack of courage" to fire an employee by text. "Consequently, if dismissal is implemented by any means other than face-to-face communication, both the legal and ethical basis for the decision to dismiss is likely to face strong and successful challenge," he said. He said Ms Sarkis had been "motivated by a consuming desire to find blame" after, in an unrelated incident, about $5,000 worth of clothing had been stolen on the watch of the employee who had swapped shifts with Sokolovic. He added that claims by Modestie that Sokolovic had been fired after complaints by customers were "unspecified, unsubstantiated allegations" that were used "belatedly" to try to bolster an "ill-considered and hasty decision".