Discrimination and equity page 1 of 89

Artificial intelligence HR and hiring tools pose "significant risks" for workplaces, according to an equality law expert who is calling for an enforceable positive duty on employers, while a recruitment body has told a Senate inquiry there should be an industry standard.

The Federal Government has made a "technical assumption" that there will be a minimum wage increase of 3.5% this year, the FWC's expert panel heard yesterday, while Commission President Adam Hatcher lamented the "Catch-22" situation the Commission faces in weighing whether Canberra will fund any gender-based increases.

Unions are asking the FWC to reject the Albanese Government's proposed phase-in schedule for Stage 3 work value pay rises of up to 13.5% in aged care, but employers say they are "commercially compelled" to support it to protect the sector's viability.

The FWC has backed a global company's HR processes after dismissing a senior employee's claim that she had no option but to resign when an investigation rejected her portrayal of a male colleague asking her to "get the coffees" during a client workshop as s-xual harassment.

Workers who subscribe to common "s-xual harassment myths" are 16 times more likely than others to use digital communications to s-xually harass their colleagues, according to a new paper that also suggests that employers had been poorly prepared for related issues arising from the pandemic-driven shift to working from home.

The Federal Court has given a media company until next month to change its defence against an article that allegedly carries the defamatory imputation that a university professor created or fostered a toxic workplace culture of bullying and fear.

The FWC has thrown out the unfair dismissal claims of two UWU organisers who had adverse action cases on foot at the time they filed.

The FWC has declined to make orders in a rare s-xual harassment dispute decision, despite forming a preliminary view that a co-worker sent "vile" and inappropriate texts to a junior employee.

The Federal Government "strongly supports" the Stage 3 pay increases of up to 13.5% determined in the aged care work value case, but wants them phased-in, with half to be paid in January next year and the remainder in January 2026.

Most universities now have cultural workload allowances for First Nations employees in their agreements that recognise the often unseen cultural education guidance they provide, with WA's Murdoch University the latest to adopt the entitlement, according to the NTEU.