The man jailed for stalking former radio queen Jackie ‘O’ Henderson has scored a huge victory in court, walking away with $50,000 after being wrongfully dismissed from his job.
David Gourlay won a major unfair dismissal victory in April after sending a dismissal letter to his employer while in a state of ‘mental confusion’.
Now the ex-stevedore, 38, has been awarded $49,728 in compensation, plus superannuation, from his former employer Sydney International Container Terminals Pty Ltd (Hutchison Ports).
According to court documents seen by the Daily Mail, Gourlay pushed for his old job, but Fair Work Commission (FWC) Commissioner Damian Sloan rejected the solution, saying: “It is not appropriate to order that Mr Gourlay be reinstated.”
“I have determined that in all the circumstances of this case it is appropriate that Mr Gourlay receive compensation equal to the difference between the income he would have received had he remained with Hutchison Ports during the expected period of his employment and the remuneration he earned from other work or employment during that period,” he added.
“That’s a sum of $49,728, plus pension.”
The man jailed for stalking former radio queen Jackie ‘O’ Henderson, 51, has scored a huge victory in court, walking away with $50,000 after being wrongfully fired from his job
‘I will order that Hutchison Ports pay Mr Gourlay $49,728 less tax as required by law, plus 11.5% pension,” Sloan added.
Hutchison Ports must pay the amount to Gourlay by September 25.
The Daily Mail has contacted Henderson for comment.
In April, the Courier Mail reported that Gourlay had sent a resignation letter to Hutchison Ports’ HR department at 4.31am on September 26, 2024.
The company accepted the resignation at 11:02 a.m.; However, Gourlay later sent a follow-up email stating that he had changed his mind about leaving.
The publication reported that Gourlay later argued before the FWC that he never intended to resign and was suffering from “paranoid delusions” at the time.
David Gourlay, 38, won a major unfair dismissal victory in April after sending a dismissal letter to his employer while in a state of ‘mental confusion’
Although Gourlay had not informed his employer that he was experiencing mental health issues at the time, colleagues reportedly raised their concerns with management on the day of his email, later that afternoon.
The Maritime Union of Australia then escalated the matter and formally requested that Gourlay be allowed to withdraw his resignation, which Hutchison rejected.
Gourlay then took his case to the FWC and asked to be reinstated to his old job.
However, FWC Commissioner Sloan denied the request and ruled in March 2025 that there was no dismissal, despite finding that Gourlay was in a state of “mental confusion” when he sent the email.
The case escalated again to a Full Bench hearing, which found in December that Sloan had made an ‘arguable error’ in his judgment by ‘failing to take into account events after the dismissal email was accepted’.
The court did not rule on the case, but returned it to Sloan to reconsider.
Gourlay was sentenced to 16 months in prison in December for stalking Henderson
In April, Sloan reversed his decision, ruling that Hutchison had failed to conduct appropriate investigations into Gourlay’s condition.
‘Mr Gourlay had an employment contract of almost eight years. “I accept that this was not without its problems, but it was harsh for Hutchison Ports to claim to regard Mr Gourlay’s dismissal as legally effective and to accept it,” Sloan said.
Despite the reversal, Sloan also raised concerns about Gourlay’s fitness to resume work, stating he had “insufficient evidence” to rule on reinstatement and instead ordering a new hearing.
Gourlay was sentenced to 16 months in prison in December for stalking 51-year-old Henderson.
Over a five-month period, he sent her up to 2,000 direct messages on Instagram, many of which arrived in quick succession and referred to private details about her life.
In the delusional story he constructed, Gourlay even claimed that the couple shared a child.
Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court heard that Gourlay has schizoaffective disorder with bipolar features, and that his belief he was in a relationship with Henderson stemmed from severe delusions.
His lawyer, Trudie Cameron, told the court her client was experiencing significant difficulty and had not been taking the prescribed medication.
He had reported hallucinations and paranoia in the period leading up to the barrage of messages.
An expert report directly linked his behavior to his mental health condition, with the court hearing the offense occurred entirely within the context of his delusion.
Cameron stated that when stabilized with medication, Gourlay functions well within the community.
She argued that he should serve his sentence in the community, highlighting his remorse and his awareness of the effect his behavior would have had on Henderson.
However, the prosecutor argued that Gourlay should be jailed, describing the sexualized messages as “repugnant” and emphasizing the need to send a clear message of deterrence.
Deputy Chief Magistrate Theo Tsavdaridis said the content of the messages was extremely worrying and that Henderson’s fears for her family’s safety were fully justified when Gourlay appeared near her home.
He also noted that Gourlay had a lengthy criminal history and had been serving two community orders at the time of the offence.
Gourlay was sentenced to 16 months in prison, with a non-parole period of eight months.
Taking into account time already served, Gourlay became eligible for parole in March this year.
A five-year violence order was also issued, preventing him from contacting Henderson in any way other than through a lawyer.
The order, which expires in 2030, prohibits him from assaulting, threatening, stalking or harassing the radio host or anyone with whom she has a domestic relationship.
