Emma says she was merely making an attempt to spice up morale at work. But colleagues declare her Satanic ‘summoning ritual’ left them traumatised

A hotel worker who was sacked for arranging rubber ducks around a pentagram for a mock ‘summoning ritual’ has won her unfair dismissal case. 

Australian Venue Company duty manager Emma Donato was posted at Cleveland Sands Hotel in east Brisbane from June 2025.

A few weeks into her time at the new location, she began to place small rubber ducks in staff areas as a ‘playful attempt to lift morale’.

Mrs Donato told the Fair Work Commission the ducks were meant to be a practical joke during a period that felt ‘increasingly stressful’ for the team. 

During the evening on July 3, the commission heard she arranged a small display of rubber ducks and a hand-drawn pentagram on her manager’s desk. 

A pentagram is a five-pointed star drawn with one continuous line, often associated with magic, the occult, and sometimes Satanism.

The display was referred to as ‘ducks engaged in a summoning ritual to summon more ducks’ with Mrs Donato sharing plans to bring in a larger duck the next day.

But the commission was told her manager submitted a formal complaint, which included a photo of the scene on her desk. 

‘I have just arrived to work to find the attached picture on my desk. No matter if it seems funny with the duckies, it is a symbol evoking the devil,’ she wrote. 

‘I have past experiences that terrify me of these ritualistic actions, but I’m sure it would upset anyone.’

Mrs Donato told the commission she and the manager worked a shift that day ‘without issue’.

When she heard rumours of an HR complaint on July 6, Mrs Donato said she avoided discussing it with her manager, who she said showed ‘no signs of discomfort’. 

That same day, Mrs Donato’s wife Serena – who worked for Australian Venue Company’s Mansfield Tavern Brisbane – told the commission she had heard the incident had ‘gone to HR’ but did not know the scope or that someone felt ‘targeted’.

In an Instagram group chat with current and former Cleveland Sands staff, the commission heard that Serena asked for clarification.

‘Alright I have to ask: who knows what about the aftermath of the ducks LMFAAAOOO,’ she wrote.

‘Maybe needless to say, Emma’s spooked and it’d be real cool if it didn’t get gossiped about at worrrkkk I beg I beg.’

The messages were shared with Mrs Donato’s manager, the commission was told, who then informed the company’s people and culture team that ‘they were mocking [her] about the pentagram incident in [the group chat]’.

Over the next few days, Mrs Donato received a series of formal letters from management regarding the allegations against her. 

On July 9, she texted an apology to the manager before attending a disciplinary meeting, expressing regret if the incident had caused harm.

She told the commission she did not feel it was appropriate to apologise prior to that meeting, as she had only heard rumours and had not been contacted by HR yet. 

Following the meeting, Mrs Donato received a letter of dismissal.

Her wife, Serena, was also sacked after she met with management regarding her messages to the group chat. 

Just over a month later, on August 11, the Donatos discovered Emma’s manager had publicly shared an image of a new tattoo.

It was of ‘the very pentagram shape that she and [Australian Venue Company] claim to have caused her distress’, the commission heard.

The couple successfully appealed their dismissal at the commission in Brisbane before commissioner Chris Simpson on February 5. 

‘[Emma] Donato consistently stated that the reason she had been placing ducks around the workplace was to boost morale of the team as a whole, and when asked she would tell people what she was doing,’ he said in his findings. 

‘I accept her submission that while her prank may have been unwise it was not intended to be malicious.’

He added that her behaviour did not constitute bullying under the Fair Work Act.

Mr Simpson also accepted Serena Donato was unaware of the manager’s distress and did not consider that her group chat messages amounted to ‘bullying or mockery’.

Addressing the Donatos’ concern regarding the manager’s tattoo of a pentagram, the commissioner issued a scathing comment.

‘I simply make the observation that this seems somewhat incongruent with the level of impact the [manager] appears to have communicated to the [company], that the incident had on her,’ he said.

Australian Venue Company was ordered to pay each woman six weeks’ compensation, totalling $8,405.76 for Emma and $7,050.00 for Serena. 

The company told the Daily Mail that it acknowledges the decision and respects the commission’s position on the matter.

‘We will review the findings carefully and continue to look for ways to improve our processes to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all employees,’ the statement read. 

‘As a company, we have a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harassment and are committed to creating a safe, respectful and supportive workplace.

‘Given the privacy considerations for those involved, we will not be providing further comment at this time.’

Employment lawyer Roxanne Hart shared her thoughts on the case on TikTok, highlighting: ‘Not every breach of policy is a valid reason for termination’. 

‘The federal commission said that [the dismissal] wasn’t essentially a proportional response to terminate the employee for the practical joke,’ she said.