Workplace sexual harassment training "overwhelmingly" focuses on male-to-female conduct, which could perpetuate stigma and underreporting among men who are harassed by men, a lawyer warns.
The Fair Work Commission is treating allegations of s-xual harassment as a "very serious matter", but employers still need strong evidence and thorough processes to defend summary dismissals, a workplace lawyer says.
Employers can use the Respect@Work framework to prevent all inappropriate workplace behaviour, rather than considering that it only applies to s-xual harassment, according to an expert in the field.
The positive duty employers have to address bullying, s-xual harassment and other psychosocial hazards calls for a "fundamental" shift in workplace listening and reporting mechanisms, a culture specialist says.
Public reporting of "alarming" inappropriate behaviour in workplaces should spur all employers to more proactively address their psychosocial risks, an expert says.
Leadership is the first of seven areas employers must address to meet their positive duty to eliminate s-xual harassment, but what is "proportionate and appropriate" will vary between organisations, a workplace lawyer says.
Although Respect@Work legislation has been in place for some time, employers' responses vary greatly on the spectrum between non-compliance and best practices. Watch this HR Daily Premium webcast to lift your organisation's game on this critical issue.
"Simple life experience" should have taught an employee not to bully and humiliate his co-worker, according to the Fair Work Commission, but a lack of evidence that he was trained in workplace policies meant his dismissal was harsh.
Nine Entertainment has a systemic issue with abuse of power and authority; bullying, discrimination and harassment; and s-xual harassment, a review of its culture has found.
Some employers have successfully stepped up to the task of managing psychosocial safety, but in many other workplaces, initiatives are falling flat. Join us for an HR Daily webinar to understand what's holding back progress in this critical space and how to move forward.
