Filter Results

Respect@Work – Positive Duty on Employers

The Anti-Discrimination and Human Rights Legislation Amendment (Respect at Work) Act 2022(Cth) places a positive duty on employers, including agencies to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate hostile workplace environments, sexual harassment, harassment on the grounds of sex, gender-based discrimination in the workplace and related acts of victimisation. Under the Work Health and Safety …
Read more

Should the Pension Age be reduced for First Nations people?

The full Federal Court will shortly consider whether Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples should be able to access the aged pension early following a recent legal proceeding that argues that the gap in life expectancy means holding them to the retirement age is discrimination and a contravention of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975. The …
Read more

Does the Australian Government have a duty of care in relation to climate change?

On October 26, 2021, Wadhuam Paul Kabai and Wadhuam Pabai Pabai, First Nations’ leaders from the Gudamalulgal nation of the Torres Strait Islands, filed a case challenging the Commonwealth’s failure to cut emissions and asserting that the government’s inaction will force their communities to migrate to a new area. The Plaintiffs presented scientific evidence proving …
Read more

Are PhD Students being paid below the minimum wage?

University of Sydney Classics PhD graduate Tristan Burt has launched a class action against the Commonwealth, arguing that PhD students should be classified as employees rather than students. Burt takes aim as the Commonwealth Research Training Program (RTP) which provides RTP scholarships to doctorate students for stipends, among other things, to assist students with the …
Read more

Traps in being too strict in probity

Probity is central to Australian Government procurement. To achieve probity in a procurement process, some of the general principles for officials to be mindful of include: To help comply with these principles, there are now well-established probity practices developed and refined over the last three decades that should be used. These practices include the implementation …
Read more

New year, new charity reporting obligations

Late last year, a number of amendments were made to charity regulations which impact on ACNC reporting obligations from this year. The changes relate to: The charity size thresholds have been amended, from the 2022 annual reporting period, as follows: Charity Size Defined now as: From 2022 Annual Information Statement reporting period, defined as: Small …
Read more

Does your agency know when to engage a probity advisor?

Probity is the evidence of ethical behaviour, and can be defined as complete and confirmed integrity, uprightness and honesty in a particular process. When dealing with government resources officials need to ensure proper use and management of public resources. Probity aims to identify the risks which can occur at any stage of a process and …
Read more

Are you building or renovating? How does your contract deal with disputes?

A recent case involving a dispute between a builder and homeowners after they entered into a Masters Builders Association Home Building Contract (Contract) has highlighted some important considerations in respect of dispute resolution processes in building and construction contracts. The Court upheld the validity of a clause in the Contract which allowed disputes between the …
Read more