Topics: Workplace relations and safety

On 14 June 2018, Safe Work Australia released its much-anticipated national guidance material on work-related psychological health and safety.

Many employers incorrectly assume that where they are paying an employee a salary, they are simply not covered by an award. Given the strict consequences for employers who fail to pay staff correctly under an award, it’s critical that employers understand their obligations.

The Fair Work Commission has criticised Komatsu Forklift Australia for fundamental failures of due process in its dismissal, via email, of a worker who had been absent due to mental health issues.

In Wearne v State of Victoria [2017] VSC 25, the Supreme Court of Victoria highlighted the importance of a proactive response from employers who become aware of a specific risk of harm to an employee.

In Chalker v Murrays Australia Pty Ltd [2017] NSWCATAD 112, a bus and coach charter company was ordered to pay a job candidate $10,000 compensation for discriminating against him during the recruitment process on the basis of his mental illness.

For an employer, managing employees who are experiencing a mental health condition in the workplace can be challenging.

It’s important that all employers have a policy in place to manage any risk to their business by employee use of social media. In this informative video, Partner Belinda Winter outlines the key things employers should consider when implementing an effective social media policy in the workplace.

The #MeToo movement may empower employees to raise sexual harassment allegations. These allegations may be both historic and recent. This poses an important question for employers: Will the current avalanche of sexual harassment allegations toppling prominent men in media and government cascade down to my workplace?