Sex/ gender discrimination page 16 of 21

The Federal Court has found a sexually harassed worker has a reasonable chance of successfully challenging orders clearing a Boral subsidiary of vicarious liability, on the basis that the judgment is "unsafe" due to a six-year delay.

A law firm's principal solicitor must pay $170,000 in damages after subjecting a paralegal to months of s-xual harassment that included a "bombardment" of inappropriate emails, coerced hugs and veiled threats that her employment depended on them starting a relationship.

In a finding that might influence Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins' inquiry into sexual harassment, a UK parliamentary inquiry has recommended legislating to outlaw non-disclosure agreements that restrict "legitimate discussion" of unlawful discrimination and harassment.

A lawyer accused of bullying has failed to convince the Federal Court that it should stop a law firm from potentially expelling her as a partner because it treated her less favourably than male colleagues, the court holding that conduct that included an "inflammatory" letter following the complaints set her circumstances apart.

FWC President Iain Ross's delegate has refused to refer to the Federal Court IR Minister Kelly O'Dwyer's "revolutionary" question of law as to whether the Fair Work Act allows indirectly discriminatory terms in agreements, while also flagging potential hurdles to her quest for a review of a new fire brigade deal.

A male worker and an employer that pledged to indemnify him after he was accused of sexual assaulting a female colleague have been ordered to jointly pay her $130,000 in damages for pain and suffering and for the company to pay a further $20,000 in aggravated damages, after it conducted a "trenchant defence" of the perpetrator, who took advantage of the young woman after she collapsed at work.

Employers should be subject to a stronger onus to prevent s-xual harassment under the existing positive duty to provide safe workplaces under OHS laws, while the Fair Work Act should be amended to include explicit anti-harassment rights, according to Victoria Legal Aid.

The FWC has told an employer that it must accept responsibility for a "suboptimal" workplace culture that it could have reset before sacking two senior wharf workers who verbally abused a female colleague, but it upheld their dismissals for behaviour that "crossed the line".

The FWC has approved a Melbourne fire brigade agreement after it accepted undertakings that override terms that hindered workers going part-time and allowed their union to block flexible working arrangements, while a challenge is still on foot to an earlier finding that discriminatory deals can still get up.

The operator of a multi-billion dollar offshore gas project is being sued for gender discrimination, a former employee alleging the company paid her less than men, refused to cover travel costs, and took adverse action by downgrading her duties when she made complaints in the course of her job.