Teacher argued that being called 'Mr Baldy' was sexual harassment - now a judge has dismissed his case with a brutal truth bomb

By SARAH BROOKES - SENIOR REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 14:18, 27 July 2026 | Updated: 14:18, 27 July 2026 A high school teacher who claimed colleagues taunted him as 'Mr Baldy' and mocked him for taking gender affirmation leave has vowed to keep fighting after his case was thrown out. Timb Hoswell alleged staff at Caroline Chisholm School in Canberra's Tuggeranong district subjected him to gender-based taunts about his baldness and mocked him over comments relating to gender affirmation leave. However, the Fair Work Commission ruled his application had 'no reasonable prospects of success' because he had already been sacked and therefore there was no ongoing risk of workplace bullying. His application named the ACT Government's Education Directorate as his employer and identified Jessica Vilkaitis, Steven Collins and Julie Dixon as the individuals he alleged bullied him.  Mr Hoswell lodged his stop-bullying application in April 2026, but was dismissed from his teaching role on June 11, with the published decision not disclosing why he was sacked. The teacher alleged that he was sexually harassed in two separate ways. First, he claimed the bullying he endured included repeated taunts about his baldness, with a female colleague allegedly referring to him as 'Mr No Hair', 'No Hair Timb' and 'Mr Baldy'. Because the comments targeted his male pattern baldness, Mr Hoswell argued they were inherently gender-based. Timb Hoswell (pictured) said he endured included repeated taunts about his baldness, with a female colleague allegedly referring to him as 'Mr No Hair', 'No Hair Timb' and 'Mr Baldy' Caroline Chisholm School principal Julie Dixon (pictured) was also named in the application Caroline Chisholm School (pictured) in Canberra's Tuggeranong district  He contended a female staff member making derogatory remarks about a man's appearance and physical characteristics, including mocking him for being bald, amounted to sexual harassment.  Mr Hoswell also argued a senior education official attacked his gender by accusing him of wanting to use gender affirmation leave to work on his car, which he said reinforced 'toxic stereotypes about men and cars'.  The leave is a workplace entitlement to support employees undergoing gender transition-related medical, legal or personal processes. Speaking to the Daily Mail, Mr Hoswell said any type of body shaming in a workplace is uncalled for. 'If a man referred to a woman on the basis of her appearance, attractiveness or physical features, with mocking nicknames to upset, humiliate or demean her attractiveness or self-esteem, for those features, it would be sexual harassment,' he said. 'Male pattern baldness is ostensively a male feature. I got sick of a double standard where men are shamed and made into objects like women have been in the past, depending on desirability and attractiveness to either the same sex, or opposite on their looks, and not their ability to do their job.' Mr Hoswell said schools need to be a place of safety and set the standard for professionalism in a workplace. 'As a high school teacher I am concerned about body shaming, toxic stereotypes and the long term effect of bullying in the workplace,' he said. Mr Hoswells' application named the ACT Government's Education Directorate as his employer and identified Jessica Vilkaitis (pictured) as one of the individuals he alleged bullied him 'I am worried about how body shaming and negative language effects students of both sexes indirectly, if it is happening in a staff room, and I wanted to put an end to this work culture and the impact it is having on education and students, by confronting it directly. 'Teachers need to act professionally and not voice opinions about gender, body types or male and female roles, and not refer to any types of body shaming, as students inadvertently overhear these comments and internalise them.' Mr Hoswell also claimed the ACT Education Directorate made documents with false allegations against him that should never have been made and had 'created lasting psychoactive hazards in the workplace which may continue to be used to hurt [him]'. He further alleged the Education Directorate had made a document containing information about his racial heritage and he feared a 'group of racists' could use such documents to harm his future employment prospects. Commissioner Damian Sloan found Mr Hoswell had misinterpreted Fair Work Act provisions relating to sexual harassment claims, but said it was unnecessary to determine whether the alleged comments amounted to harassment. He ruled the application failed on jurisdictional grounds because it was lodged as a stop-bullying claim and Mr Hoswell was no longer employed by the ACT Education Directorate. 'Therefore, there cannot be a risk that he will continue to be bullied at work by the individuals named in his application,' Commissioner Sloan said. 'It follows that I do not have power to make an order to stop bullying.' The Daily Mail has contacted the ACT Education Directorate for comment.