Is a workplace relationship ever consistent with good governance
Latest Articles
A perspective on the unequal representation of women in leadership
Damages in bullying claims – the stakes are rising even higher
Damages in sexual harassment and bullying claims – the stakes are rising
In the world of anti-discrimination law awards of money against employers for psychiatric injury or illness caused by sexual harassment by one of their employees have been rare and low, typically in the range of $12,000 to $20,000. Similarly, the anti-bullying jurisdiction of the Fair Work Commission has seen limited orders made to prevent further bullying where claims have been made, and compensation is not available as a remedy for bullying behavior.
But things are…
Smartphone blunders in the workplace
Snapchat in the workplace: where’s it app?
‘Snapchat is about sharing moments and having fun’ reads the tagline of the mega-app that has the fastest-growing social network in the world. But despite its phenomenal popularity, what potential impact might Snapchat have on your workplace?…
Screening for psychopaths – managing the front end of workplace bullying
When it comes to managing bullying in the workplace, the focus tends to be on dealing with the bullying behaviour after it has occurred or at least after the bully has started work. But are there ways to stop bullies from being recruited in the first place?
One place to start is screening during recruitment. There are certain personalities who deliberately inflict harm or lack the ability to understand the harm they are doing to others.…
Director prosecution and conviction in New South Wales
The NSW work health and safety regulator has brought a successful prosecution against a company director resulting in a criminal conviction and fines against the director and the company. An order was also made requiring the director to pay the costs of the prosecution. It appears that this is the first such successful prosecution under the harmonised Federal safety legislation in NSW. However, the fines imposed in this case ($15,000 against the director and $150,000 against…
Restraint Payments in Australia – Compliance Issues
In the latest of our series of post-employment protection blog posts, we consider the compliance and regulatory issues that need to be thought through when drafting an effective post-employment restraint in Australia.
How will any restraint payment be structured?
The threshold question is what kind of payment (if any) to make in return for the agreement of an employee not to engage in particular activities, such as working for a competitor, soliciting business from clients,…
What does the Trans Pacific Partnership mean for IP in Australia?
The Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (“TPP) between twelve Pacific Rim counties, including Australia and the United States, was finally made public on 5 November.
The text of the Agreement will now be reviewed by various parliamentary committees before Parliament votes on legislation to implement the Agreement in Australia, likely to be in February or March next year. If the implementing legislation is passed in Australia and the other signatory countries, the Agreement will be ratified and come…
