Working from home arrangements have been a big success in the Australian Public Service, with a mere handful of disputes about flexible work requests, the CPSU has told a Senate inquiry into a bill aimed at enshrining WFH rights.
The Victorian Government's new bill that restricts the use of non-disclosure agreements in settlements of workplace sexual harassment cases will enable workers to terminate them after a year, with just seven days notice.
The NT Anti-Discrimination Commission has warned that the Finocchiaro Government's legislation that reinstates the exemption for religious schools to discriminate in employment could lead to LGBTQ+ workers, women and workers of other faiths facing disciplinary action or dismissal.
The Minns Government has passed major reforms that establish anti-bullying and s-xual harassment jurisdictions in the IRC and allow workers to seek preventative orders and up to $100,000 in damages, while also significantly lifting the small claims cap.
Workers in NSW will need to secure a ruling from the State IRC that bullying or harassment has occurred before they seek compensation for a related psychological injury, under draft legislation that will also add gender equality as an object of state workplace laws.
In a judgment raising the possibility that State workplace protections could extend to independent contractors under the Fair Work Act, Federal Court Chief Justice Debra Mortimer has today dismissed Melbourne Symphony Orchestra's bid to strike out a freelance pianist's adverse action claim that it discriminated against him by cancelling a performance after he accused Israel of committing war crimes.
The WGEA has published a menu of gender equality targets that employers with 500 or more employees can draw from in preparation for next year's lodgement deadline, along with a "workflow" timeline, selection guidance, and list of frequently asked questions and their answers.
The UK Government is considering introducing reforms to stop employers using labour-hire arrangements to short-change women, as part of a suite of changes aimed at ending workplace pay discrimination.
