Ensuring Your Workplace Is Free Of Damaging Staff Behavior
Bullying, Harassment And Discrimination In The Workplace
Managing workplace bullying, discrimination and harassment is increasingly complex, time-consuming and problematic for many businesses.
Not only is there a risk this behaviour will cause injury to your employees and the reputation of your business, but you may also be held vicariously liable for the damaging behaviour of your staff. Therefore, it is important employers are adequately supported when workplace bullying, discrimination and/or harassment occurs.
Thankfully Workplace Wizards are here to help. Our team are right with you, preventing employee bullying, discrimination or harassment issues from going from bad to worse.
What Is Workplace Bullying, Discrimination And Harassment?
Workplace bullying, discrimination and harassment can happen in any workplace and to any employee. If employees are being isolated and targeted by their peers, discriminated against for factors they can’t control such as their age, sex, or race, or being generally harassed, it’s a serious issue that needs to be addressed.
Businesses must be able to identify the signs so that they can act quickly to stop damaging behaviour and deal with offenders.
In Australia, serious cases of these offences constitute criminal offences and are punishable by imprisonment.
It’s vital to identify what constitutes workplace discrimination, bullying, and harassment – but due to the overuse and misuse of these terms, it’s also important to be clear what they are not. Many instances of bullying, harassment or workplace conflict won’t necessarily constitute unlawful discrimination in the workplace under the Fair Work Act. We aim to understand the issue at its core and provide an appropriate solution, using our experience in employment law and anti-discrimination law as a last resort.
Of course, any act that makes an employee feel offended, humiliated or intimidated should be taken gravely seriously, and being firm about how these terms are defined will make it a lot easier to take disciplinary action.
Our Approach To Manage Wokplace Bullying, Discrimination Or Harassment
If you’ve seen the signs of bullying, discrimination or harassment in your workplace, our team can work with you to address the situation in a constructive way. We assist in identifying the cause of these issues, working out whether there is an issue at all that can be solved, then tackling the issue at its cause.
Workplace Wizards focuses on solving workplace problems without resorting directly to legal action. Through education and training, clear communication, and support, we can solve many of the issues causing workplace discrimination, sexual harassment,
Use these handy links to find out more:
What is workplace bullying?
What is workplace discrimination?
Sexual harassment in the workplace: the facts
How we help
Workplace Wizards provides expert advice and support to help you manage workplace bullying, discrimination and harassment.
This includes:
- helping employers implement clear workplace bullying, discrimination and workplace harassment policies and procedures;
- delivering workplace bullying and harassment training;
- investigating and providing detailed reports on allegations of bullying, discrimination and harassment as an independent external investigator;
- providing business support and strategic advice to resolve current workplace issues and minimise potential claims; and
- representing clients in the Fair Work Commission, discrimination tribunals and courts.
Let’s discuss how you can make your workplace a more comfortable environment for all your employees. Talk to our Australian workplace lawyers today for more information on how you can eliminate bullying and discrimination in the workplace.
Contact us
Get in contact with a workplace lawyer or advisor to access initial advice about your workplace requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I need to seek legal advice?
While a workplace bullying lawyer or an employment lawyer can provide you with a definite resolution to instances of harassment or discrimination in the workplace, it may not be the best solution to the problem. Legal services can get messy, especially if the issue isn’t necessarily unlawful discrimination. Workplace Wizards fixes this by taking a “negotiation first” approach to workplace discrimination matters. While we are not a law firm, all our advisors are legally qualified and practising employment lawyers. We use our experience in workplace discrimination law and federal discrimination laws to navigate your matter and provide you with a solution that achieves the best possible result.
What kinds of workplace bullying, harassment, and discrimination are there?
Discrimination comes in many forms, including:
- racial discrimination
- discrimination based on physical or mental disability (under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992)
- sexual harassment (under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984)
- occupational health and safety
- discrimination based on religious beliefs or political opinion
- discrimination based on sexual orientation, pregnancy, or marital status
- discrimination based on mental health
- discrimination based on an irrelevant criminal record
There are also some more modern forms of discrimination that aren’t comprehensively documented or legislated under anti-discrimination laws yet, but are important to recognise and address in the workplace. These include discrimination against gender identity and similar topics. If you notice something in your workplace that could constitute discriminatory practices, it’s important to take action sooner rather than later. If you are still unsure and want to be certain whether something is discriminatory, contact a specialist or the fair work ombudsman.
What should I do if someone is bringing a discrimination case against my business?
If an employee, past employee, or prospective employee has accused you of discriminating against them or you’re receiving workplace complaints from a party, they may take legal action. Workplace discrimination cases are a huge issue, especially if adverse action is suspected. We recommend you seek advice from a lawyer.
When does workplace bullying and discrimination occur?
Workplace bullying and discrimination can occur anytime during the employment relationship. While your workplace might prohibit discrimination, you can still encounter indirect or direct discrimination and it may be hard to recognise. Having the right processes, training and values in place from the start can help in limiting discriminatory conduct and, ideally, eliminating it altogether.
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