On 5 March 2020, the Australian Human Rights Commission (the Commission) released its long-awaited report on sexual harassment in Australian workplaces, “Respect@Work”. The report is the culmination of an 18-month inquiry, led by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins. It is comprehensive and data-driven, and concludes (amongst other things) that the current legal framework is, in … Read more
Just in time for your holiday reading, we’ve compiled our Top 10 Trends in employment and industrial relations in Australia for 2018. Click here to review our selection. We’d love to hear your thoughts if you have any comments. Read more
The Fair Work Amendment (Family and Domestic Violence Leave) Bill 2018 passed both houses of Parliament on Thursday 6 December 2018 and also received royal assent on Tuesday 11 December 2018. The Bill inserts a new entitlement in the National Employment Standards for all national system employees to five days of unpaid family and domestic violence leave … Read more
The Victorian state election on Saturday 24 November 2018 was characterised by large swings, with the Liberal party losing several previously safe seats and Premier Daniel Andrews successfully leading the ALP to a clear victory, having significantly increased its majority. So what will this mean for businesses? Read more
Workplace violence is a significant and ongoing risk that employers should be alive to because it affects employee health, safety and wellbeing, which in turn impacts on productivity, absenteeism, sickness and replacement costs, to name a few. In respect of the individual, it often causes physical or psychological injury and can even lead to death. … Read more
The daily allegations of harassment in the press and social media campaigns highlighting the prevalence of harassment around the world should prompt business leaders and HR teams to ensure that they understand their obligations and review whether their internal processes will effectively manage employee complaints and withstand scrutiny. With this in mind, this month, we … Read more
A recent decision of the Victorian Supreme Court of Appeal has considered the ‘prohibition against discrimination’ offence provisions in the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (Vic) (OHSA). Judicial consideration of these provisions is rare. In the harmonised jurisdictions there has been none. That said, the case demonstrates a trend we are seeing in regulators’ … Read more
A recent report by the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) reinforces the risks in dismissing an employee on the basis of past criminal convictions. Employers should exercise caution in dismissing an employee on the basis of their criminal record. It cannot be assumed that antisocial criminal conduct will be regarded as depriving an employee of … Read more
In brief Many employers will, at some point, be faced with the difficult task of terminating the employment of an employee who has been absent from work for some time and is no longer able to perform their job due to illness or injury. This can be a tricky issue to manage and negotiate. The … Read more
