Social media "moves the dial" on harassing workplace behaviour and will contribute to more litigation flowing through to the courts, according to Australian Human Resources Institute chair Peter Wilson.
Unions will next week consider pushing for stronger remedies for unfair dismissal by adopting measures such as removing the $73,000 compensation limit, enabling employees to pursue more than their lost income and empowering them to seek penalties against employers.
The head of the FWC's bullying jurisdiction and a public service commissioner who oversees implementation of domestic violence workplace policies say they have ditched labels and are using more empowering approaches to dealing with domestic violence and bullying.
Almost one-in-10 Australian workers now experience bullying, according to a report released this week, with those employed in the utilities and government administration and defence industries suffering among the highest levels of harassment.
A worker who made derogatory comments about a supervisor on social media has won $28,000 compensation because he was never told his dismissal was partly based on a confidential report claiming his behaviour had a negative effect on his colleagues.
Responsibility for gender equity strategies should be partially devolved from centralised HR departments to line managers, and training to combat "unconscious bias" in selection processes should be mandated for supervisors and managers, according to a new report on barriers to women's career advancement in higher education.
Former Sex Discrimination Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick says a culture of sexual harassment in the Australian Federal Police is so "pervasive" that almost one in two females and 20% of males have experienced it in the past five years.
The Victorian Auditor-General's damning audit report on the state health sector's response to bullying and harassment has found its agencies lack even the "fundamental, underpinning foundations of effective policies and procedures" to tackle the issue.
False evidence charges for Cbus employees; Unions target rural MPs and crossbenchers on penalty rates; Surgeons' action plan aims to reduce discrimination, bullying; Victoria backs family violence education program in workplaces; and Essendon to admit supplements program breached safety laws.
Bullying complaints by NSW public sector employees appear to be falling from an "unacceptably high" level, along with associated compensation claims, while the government is in the final stages of developing an anti-bullying "dashboard", according to a new report from the state's Public Service Commission.
