Risk Management Workplace Discrimination

Risk Management Workplace Discrimination

Risk Management Workplace Discrimination – It is vitally important as part of your organisation’s risk management strategy to ensure you do all you can to minimize or eliminate discrimination in the workplace, training is a key component

Discrimination is any behaviour, practice or omission that makes distinctions between individuals or groups so as to disadvantage some and advantage others. Discrimination is unlawful on the grounds of:

  • Age
  • Carers’ responsibilities
  • Disability – physical or intellectual disability, HIV/AIDS
  • Gender
  • Irrelevant criminal record
  • Marital status, including occupation of spouse or partner
  • Parental status and carer/family responsibilities
  • Physical appearance
  • Political conviction
  • Pregnancy or potential pregnancy
  • Race, nationality or ethnic origin
  • Religious belief
  • Sexuality or sexual orientation
  • Social origin
  • Trade union activity
  • Transgender
  • Subjection to domestic or family violence.
  • Immigration status

Under  the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, employers and employees have a legal responsibility to comply with any measures that promote health and safety in the workplace.  Employers must therefore take all reasonable steps to eliminate or reduce the risks to employees’ health and safety in the workplace.

Wokplace discrimination may be unlawful under federal and state anti-discrimination legislation where the complaint is linked to or based on one of the prohibited grounds of discrimination.  Discrimination legislation includes:

  • Age Discrimination Act 2004
  • Disability Discrimination Act 1992
  • Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act, 1999
  • Australian Human Rights Commission Act, 1986
  • Racial Discrimination Act, 1975
  • Sex Discrimination Act, 1984

If an employee believes that they have been discriminated against in the workplace they can make a complaint to the Australian Human Rights Commission

The AWPTI Understanding Workplace Misconduct training courses have been disigned to assist employers and employees to understand their responsibilities and for employers as part of taking all reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate as far as possible workplace discrimination in the workplace. Details here

With respect to power imbalances it is important that all your employees know what workplace bullying is, that is unlawful, that the person’s position within an organisation does not relieve them of their responsibilities to comply with workplace bullying guidelines and the behavioral expectations of your organisation.

The duty not to engage in discrimination not diminished by the fact that a person is a high performer or is generally well liked within the organisation. Businesses and employers must have a zero tolerance policy to workplace discrimination it should never be tolerated.

The Law

In addition sex discrimination is unlawful under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 – Sect 5

(1) For the purposes of this Act, a person (the discriminator ) discriminates against another person (the aggrieved person ) on the ground of the sex of the aggrieved person if, by reason of:

(a)  the sex of the aggrieved person;

(b)  a characteristic that appertains generally to persons of the sex of the aggrieved person; or

(c)  a characteristic that is generally imputed to persons of the sex of the aggrieved person;

the discriminator treats the aggrieved person less favourably than, in circumstances that are the same or are not materially different, the discriminator treats or would treat a person of a different sex.

(2)    For the purposes of this Act, a person (the discriminator ) discriminates against another person (the aggrieved person ) on the ground of the sex of the aggrieved person if the discriminator imposes, or proposes to impose, a condition, requirement or practice that has, or is likely to have, the effect of disadvantaging persons of the same sex as the aggrieved person.

  • Grounds; Sect 5A – 7A
  • sexual orientation
  • gender identity
  • intersex status
  • marital or relationship status
  • potential pregnancy
  • breastfeeding
  • family responsibilities

Having training in place is not only important for an employer to satisfy the general duty of care to take all reasonable steps to ensure that nothing in the workplace could cause an employee to suffer an injury or illness, courts and tribunals have found that workplace discrimination can lead to psychological injuries and illnesses such as stress anxiety depression, PTSD and in the worst cases suicide.

Don’t take the risk of your business failing to satisfy your duty of care.