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It’s IR nerd Christmas and the feeds are full of threads parsing and bemoaning 111 pages of Fair Work Amendment Bill. I have one thing to add to the discourse: nowhere does the bill address workplace sexual harassment.
This is despite the government receiving a comprehensive report from the AHRC just as COVID hit, recommending significant law reform.
But Alicia, you say: WSH is part of the anti-discrimination schema! Of course it would not be part of a Fair Work attack!
Well, not strictly correct: the FWA has contained terrible, stunted and ultimately failing provisions to deal with adverse actions on the basis of protected category for some years. But also, my question: why SHOULDN’T the FWA address sexual harassment at work?
The AHRC Respect@Work report recommended a review of the Fair Work schema on workplace sexual harassment, alongside specific, significant recommendations for law reform to the Sex Discrimination Act. I see no response to that in this bill.
OTOH it’s a blessing that important workplace sexual harassment reform is not being used as a smoke screen for the significant attacks on worker rights, as I had somehow expected. On the other hand, how long must we still wait for change?
