BHP has just released its Annual Report for the latest financial year, which includes occupational health and safety (OHS). The report places Safety as the opening chapter of the Annual Report. Symbolically, this matters even if the issues don’t feature in some of the preceding executive statements. If Safety is a number one priority, or …
For the last few years, McDonald’s in the United Kingdom has been embroiled in scandals involving the harassment and sexual harassment of staff by other staff members. As McDonald’s is an international company with similar operational systems of work, how would the Australian arm of the company react to a similar situation?...
In November 2022, then-Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins explained why sexual harassment in Australian workplaces continues to happen. Basically, she said this was because the sex discrimination laws were reactive to a worker complaint and placed no duty on employers to prevent these types of incidents. But there is more to it than that, and …
To understand one’s profession, one must find out how others see it. You may think your actions are vital to the world’s survival, but if others think you are full of shit, you need to revise your strategy. Occupational health and safety (OHS) has a strong sense of its importance but is often seen by …
A new report on sexual harassment at work by Ourwatch has been reported on by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). The report says: “…. found 40 per cent of workplace leaders surveyed were unaware of their new legal obligations to prevent workplace sexual harassment.” Given that the core legislative obligation to prevent sexual harassment is …
This month Safe Work Australia (SWA) released its Code of Practice – Sexual and gender-based harassment, which applies to almost all Australian occupational health and safety (OHS) jurisdictions. It is an important document for many reasons, not the least is to reduce, and hopefully to prevent, the potential for life-altering psychological harm. It is also …
Lisa Annese‘s article is interesting but, as with many articles on sexual harassment at work, only goes so far. It is discussive rather than practical, even though it seems to promote action. Sometimes the actions are not clear enough to inspire change. Below are my thoughts on the six steps to complement Lisa’s recommendations.
