Changes to disability discrimination laws and other human rights legislation that take effect next week will make it easier for aggrieved employees to establish they were discriminated against, a workplace relations lawyer warns.
Employees whose requests for flexibility are only partially granted are as unlikely as workers whose requests are refused to improve their work/life balance and lessen "time strain", the third annual Australian Work and Life Index survey reveals.
The "adverse action" provisions under the new industrial relations legislation will compel employers to be more cautious when making decisions that affect employees, according to workplace lawyer Alex Manos.
A $466,000 damages award is a timely reminder of how devastating the effects of workplace sexual harassment can be on both the victim and the employer if the issue is dealt with poorly, says Harriet Stacey of WISE Workplace Investigations.
Employers that defy the traditional adversarial approach to workplace negotiations when the new bargaining laws kick off this week will have a competitive edge over those that fail to engage with all business stakeholders, says lawyer, mediator and CoSolve director Clive Thompson.
An IT recruitment company has been stung with a $20,000 damages bill for misleading a worker on its bonus scheme - and other employers, a lawyer says, could find themselves in the same boat if they withhold critical information from new employees.
The new workplace laws coming into effect next week will facilitate a "maturing" of collective bargaining in Australia and require employers to be much more sophisticated in their approach to negotiations, according to workplace lawyer Chris Gardner.
From 1 July union officials will have the power to enter premises on suspicion of a workplace breach regardless of whether or not the employees are union members or covered by a union-binding agreement, says Freehills partner Anthony Longland.
The Federal Government should consider legislative amendments to let employers temporarily reduce workers' base hourly rates so they can ride out the downturn, according to Hicksons Lawyers.
