WA Statistics Related to Sexual Harassment Complaints In the 2022-23 reporting year the Commission received 31 complaints of sexual harassment in employment, 24 of those were from women. In the complaints received, women told of constant sexualised comments, supervisors trying to kiss them at work functions and receiving a sexualised Secret Santa gift from a […]
Fortescue Metal Groups Dismisses 60 Workers for Bullying, Sexual Harassment and Workplace Misconduct Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) has dismissed approximately sixty workers in relation to bullying, sexual harassment and workplace misconduct over the last financial year. According to FMG’s sustainability report released on Monday, 160 potential code breaches were investigated. 67 of the potential breaches[…..]
Legal Practice Board of Western Australia Launches ‘Speak Safely’ for Legal Professionals The Legal Practice Board of Western Australia has released a new online tool for legal professionals to report instances of harassment and inappropriate behaviour within workplaces. According to the article, the new “Speak Safely” program provides an anonymous online portal for legal practitioners[…..]
Parliament Releases New Code of Conduct to Improve Workplace Safety The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) released a statement this week in support of the introduction of a code of conduct at Parliament House. The endorsed code of conduct creates a standard of behaviour for “all parliamentarians and staffers.” Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins[…..]
Respect at Work Bill Passed • The Government announced the passage of the Anti-Discrimination and Human Rights Legislation Amendment (Respect at Work) Act 2022 (‘the Bill’) through Parliament. The Bill has now passed through both house of Parliament and is awaiting Royal Assent. The key amendments are • Positive duty: The introduction of a positive[…..]
National Survey of Mental Health-Related Stigma and Discrimination The results of the National Survey of Mental Health-Related Stigma and Discrimination have been released. The survey was completed in August 2021 by around 8000 participants. The survey included a series of questions on mental health-related discrimination in the workplace. One in three people reported unfair treatment[…..]
Committee Looks to UK For Code Of Conduct Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has promised to draft a code of conduct to implement recommendations from the report made by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins into parliamentary workplace culture. The federal parliament’s standards committee is in the process of taking submissions for the code of conduct. This[…..]
Is Your Workplace Ready to Protect Against Psychosocial Hazards? The Occupational Health and Safety Regulations in Victoria are expected to come into effect in July 2022. It will introduce new definitions relating to ‘psychosocial hazards’. This will be defined to mean “any factor or factors… that may arise in the working environment and may cause[…..]
Australia’s First National Domestic, Family And Sexual Violence Commissioner On 8 April 2022, the Minister for Women’s Safety announced the first Australian National Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Commissioner will be Catherine Fitzpatrick. This new role is being created under the new budget to address women’s issues in Australia. The Coalition is pledging $22.4 million[…..]
Dyson Heydon Victims Secure Settlement Three women who were sexually harassed by former High Court judge, Dyson Heydon, have secured a historic settlement payment. The compensation payouts were awarded in secret to the victims, Rachel Patterson Collins, Chelsea Tabart and Alex Eggerking. The payment packages are reported to have exceeded more than a million dollars.[…..]