ITALIAN CHEF FIRED FOR REFUSING TO PUT PINEAPPLE ON PIZZA

BRISBANE, NOVEMBER 5 /SRNA/ – Italian chef Davide Tamburella was fired from a restaurant in Brisbane after refusing to put pineapple on a pizza, explaining that doing so would be an "insult to his culture".

The chef was dismissed from the now-closed La Costa restaurant in May, two weeks after a meeting with management, which had received a series of complaints about his behaviour.

Among the complaints was Tamburella's refusal to make a ham and pineapple pizza for guests at a celebration. At the time, he said that management's instructions "did not have to be followed when they insulted his culture".

The details emerged after the chef filed a complaint with Australia's Fair Work Commission, claiming he had been unfairly dismissed, the BBC reported.

The Commission rejected his claim on the grounds that it had been lodged too late. It also noted that this was the third time in four years that Tamburella had refused to use fruit on pizzas.

The Australian state of Queensland produces all of the country's commercially grown pineapples.

The ruling noted that Tamburella had used vulgar language and detailed a workplace incident in April this year, when the chef fractured a bone after punching a metal railing.

The Italian chef had hoped that the restaurant would sponsor his visa and help him obtain permanent residency in Australia. However, following his dismissal, the restaurant terminated the process.