The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) recently published a research report surveying almost 60% of ASX 200 companies about their policies on addressing workplace sexual harassment. The report revealed that while companies are taking steps to address this serious issue, there is much room for improvement.

Only 60% of companies surveyed require company managers to be trained on good governance and responding to instances of sexual harassment. Furthermore, less than 20% of respondents require company directors to undertake this same training. This shows a critical gap in workplace supervisors’ awareness and ability to create safe and inclusive cultures at work. In turn, this means that many companies have reactive policies to respond to sexual harassment after the fact, rather than implementing proactive measures to prevent it in the first place.

A further issue is that only two-thirds of companies surveyed have a procedure in place for identifying risk factors relating to sexual harassment, and less than one-third publicly report information regarding sexual harassment. This creates a lack of transparency around the standards of behaviour that are acceptable at work and what is actually occurring in practice in these companies.

The AHRC’s report also includes eight recommendations for companies to improve their policies targeting workplace sexual harassment. These include measures such as setting gender diversity targets, providing employees with greater incentives to undertake further training to address sexual harassment and holding perpetrators accountable for their actions.

If you have any concerns about how you have been treated at work or would like to learn more about your rights, please do not hesitate to call us on 8917 8700.

Just as it seemed life was getting back to normal, Sydneysiders have been thrust into another lockdown. As residents prepare to stockpile their toilet paper and renew their Netflix subscriptions, fears surrounding the implications of another outbreak are being felt throughout the nation. The Delta variant of COVID-19 is officially in the community. Labelled a “strain of concern” by the WHO, the B.1.67 variant has proven more contagious and deadly than its predecessors, killing at least 400,000 Indians this year.

Here’s how to make sure you’re following the rules and staying safe this lockdown.

The rules

Sydney’s two-week lockdown is scheduled to end on Friday 9 July 2021 and expands across the Greater Sydney region (including Wollongong, the Central Coast and Blue Mountains). A fourteen-day stay at home order is also in place for all residents who left greater Sydney on or after 12 June 2021.

A Public Health Order issued by the Minister for Health directs residents in the region to wear masks in all indoor non-residential settings and on public transport and to stay at home unless absolutely necessary. There are, however, four main reasons you may be allowed to leave your home.

If you are dealing with a family law matter, the following exemptions may also apply to you. You may leave your home to:

If you feel you are at risk of domestic violence, leaving home to escape harm is also included in the list of exemptions.

For more about the rules and how they affect those in regional areas, click here.

Fines

Failure to follow the above rules will lead to an infringement notice and a possible fine of $1000. Only three days into the lockdown, 44 people had been fined for breaching Health Orders. Among those fined was Deputy Prime Minister, Barnaby Joyce, who was slapped with an infringement notice for failing to wear a mask in a petrol station.

While it seems no one will be safe from strict enforcement of the rules, Police Commissioner Michael Fuller APM noted that the police would be understanding of residents’ confusion about the application of the rules.

Vaccine rollout

In light of the 294 estimated active cases throughout the country, the Government has doubled down efforts to vaccinate Australians.

The Prime Minister announced this morning that all adults under 40 will now be able to access the AstraZeneca vaccine. However, with widespread fears surrounding the extremely narrow possibility of blood clot complications, many Australians remain hesitant.

The NSW Government has reinforced the importance of vaccination to stop the spread of the highly contagious Delta strain and prevent a constant cycle of lockdowns this winter. The efficacy of vaccination was especially evident yesterday when everyone at a Sydney birthday party became infected with COVID-19, except for the six people who were vaccinated.

For official advice about vaccinations, consult your doctor and visit health.gov.au

If you would like to learn more about this issue, or would like to discuss a legal matter, please do not hesitate to call us on 8917 8700

Inhumane immigration policies have once again inspired public outrage throughout the nation. As new information comes to light about the treatment of infants in detention facilities, Australia’s focus has been squarely on the Murugappan family. If you haven’t heard of them, here’s what’s happened so far.

Nades and Priya Murugappan, members of a highly-persecuted Tamil group, fled Sri Lanka in 2012 and 2013. Although they explained horrific experiences, watching watching loved ones killed in front of them, upon their arrival in Australia, both were denied refugee status. They were granted temporary bridging visas, and were moved to Biloela, Queensland, with their two daughters Kopica (6) and Tharnicaa (3) who were born in Australia.

Once these visas expired, the family was immediately placed in detention in Melbourne, and then on Christmas Island. The Murugappan's situation led to intensive public pressure, primarily by the Biloela community who initiated the ‘Home to Bilo’ campaign, which gained nationwide attention. Deportation back to Sri Lanka was set for 2019, however a last-minute injunction to prevent their removal was granted. The family and their supporters made numerous attempts to attain temporary visas, but were continuously rejected.

Public backlash heightened in June 2021 when it was leaked that 3-year-old Kopica had been diagnosed with a life-threatening blood infection, caused by untreated pneumonia. Security at the detention centre had refused to call medical detention for the sick child for nearly 10 days. While Kopica and her mother were eventually released to go to a Perth hospital, Kopica’s father and older sister have been forced to remain in detention.

Attempts to reunite the family have strengthened throughout the country, especially on social media, where Australians are voicing their concerns. Although the Minister for Home Affairs, Karen Andrews, has discretionary power to reunite the Murugappans, calls to permanently resettle the family in Australia have been flatly rejected.

Ideological conflicts between committing to strong border protection and exercising discretion in circumstances involving children have also sparked disagreement within the government.

Ultimately folding to the public pressure, Immigration Minister Alex Hawke has allowed the family to leave the detention centre and reside in Perth. However, the question that now needs to be answered is whether they will be allowed to permanently reside in Australia.

If you would like to learn more about this issue, or would like to discuss a legal matter, please do not hesitate to call us on 8917 8700.

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, almost 2 million Australians over the age of 15 had been sexually assaulted one or more times. Those affected by sexual assault are prone to emotional stress, psychological trauma and feelings of disconnection from daily life.

In light of recent events like Sexual Assault Awareness Month and the recent trial of Saxon Mullins’ attacker, the New South Wales Attorney General has announced a reform to previous NSW consent laws. NSW is now endorsing a new affirmative consent law.

What does affirmative consent entail?

For affirmative consent to be given, consent must be actively communicated and actively sought. Those providing and receiving consent would be encouraged to follow a ‘yes means yes’ mentality, rather than focusing on the existence or absence of a 'no.' New legislation would require a person seeking sexual intercourse to obtain a clear, expressed and active agreement before engaging in a sexual practice.

This is a win for survivors as it shifts the emphasis away from the victim’s actions and onto those of the accused.

The affirmative consent law has been at the forefront of Tasmania’s action against sexual assault for the past two decades without any controversy. However, Victoria does not require an accused person to provide any evidence to show the other party was consenting. Rather, the Victorian courts will look to the accused person’s perception of the victim’s conduct, such as whether the victim was intoxicated, wearing revealing clothing or not offering enough resistance to the sexual advances. If a perpetrator did take steps to ascertain consent, they have the right to use this as their defense.

NSW plans to eradicate these potential problems by adopting Affirmative consent laws and making consent steps mandatory. Thus, the NSW provision will provide protection to victim survivors while undertaking their fight for justice.

This does not, however, reverse the onus of proof. This means people accused of sexual assault still have the right to the presumption of innocence.

This NSW reform has been advantageous for survivors of sexual assault and provides more awareness regarding saying YES when providing consent.

If you are a victim of sexual assault and require support, there are several services you can reach out to. These include:

If you have any questions or concerns about these reforms, or you would like to discuss a legal matter further, please do not hesitate to contact us on 8917 8700.

Discussions about legal rights often concentrate on adults. However, the law also protects the rights of children in significant ways. It is important that you and your children are aware of their rights at law to ensure that these rights are respected at all times.

  1. Right to be Heard

Children have a right to be heard in all matters affecting them. In legal proceedings, child representatives must act on the child’s instructions unless the child is not competent to give instructions.

  1. Schooling

It is unlawful for educational authorities, whether private or public, to discriminate against students with disabilities. However, there is an exception to this rule if the services or facilities required by a student with a disability impose an ‘unjustifiable hardship’ on that educational authority. Enlivening this condition requires exceptional or dangerous conduct, such as protecting staff and other students from violent behaviour that may arise from a student’s disability.

Students also have a right to an education free from bullying. Every government school in New South Wales must have an Anti-Bullying Plan and schools have a responsibility to implement best practice programs to tackle bullying of all kinds, including cyberbullying.

Furthermore, public schools in New South Wales must follow the Department of Education’s policy for suspending or expelling a student. Students are entitled to procedural fairness in these decisions and possess a right to appeal. The suspension and expulsion policies of private schools must also abide by principles of procedural fairness.

Finally, schoolchildren’s privacy rights differ to those of adults, as the Department of Education’s Privacy Code of Practice allows the sharing of children’s personal information between schools, parents, guardians and caregivers in specified circumstances.

  1. Medical Treatment

At common law, children can consent to medical treatment if they fully understand the proposed treatment. Parents cannot invalidate their child’s consent, but a Court may. If a child is not competent to consent, parents may give consent unless it is a special medical procedure that requires Court authorisation.

If you have any questions or concerns about your children’s rights, call us on 8917 8700

There is no doubt that the pandemic has been a struggle for Australian families. Whether that struggle be financial or emotional, these difficult times have forced many couples to question where their relationships stand.

Any person questioning their marriage will be faced with the defining question; Do you try to work through the problem? Or do you file for a divorce?

Situation A: I want to work on my relationship, but I don’t know how

Counselling can be effective at repairing even the most broken of relationships. Studies have shown that couples therapy is effective at restoring relationships in 75 percent of cases.

If engaging a counsellor or psychologist is out of your budget, consider developing more open communication with your partner.

Situation B: I want a divorce, but I do not know how to proceed 

If you are currently in an abusive relationship or are experiencing domestic violence, there are many hotlines available to speak to someone in confidence which include:

If you are not in immediate danger and are considering getting a divorce or separating from your partner, contact our offices for a free consultation.

 

If you are currently thinking about divorce, or wish to discuss a legal matter further, please do not hesitate to contact us on 8917 8700.

The Morrison Government's rejection of a plan to extend super to paid parental leave payments will have major consequences for Australia's newest mothers.

Despite speculation of reform that would require employers to pay superannuation entitlements on all paid parental leave, the hopes of working mums were crushed with the announcement of the federal budget on 11 May 2021. Proposed changes included calling for employers to provide super or pension credits to those foregoing earning income to undertake caring responsibilities. Under this plan, the federal government would be responsible for converting carer’s credits into superannuation payments. The scheme was widely praised as a positive step towards closing the gender gap in superannuation balances by ensuring that carers (who are predominantly women) are not penalised for the essential caring services that they provide.

This budget's failure to include these changes could future mums up to $13,500 over a life time.

Despite its flaws, this budget's renewed focus on women and low income earners has shocked and delighted many. The Australian Government announced it will expand super guarantee coverage for low income workers by removing the $450 per month threshold for eligibility. With 3 billion dollars allocated to women, 2021’s budget is unrecognisable from last year’s focus on construction and roads.

If you would like to learn more about the 2021-2022 budget, you feel your employer is not honouring your rights, or you would like to discuss a legal matter, please do not hesitate to contact us on 8917 8700.

After an unprecedented year of violence, brutality and conflict, Black Lives Matter activists have finally seen justice. Earlier today, Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murder after refusing to heed George Floyd’s plea, “I can’t breathe.”

Chauvin, who joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 2001, has received a guilty verdict for all three of the charges against him; second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter.

Combined, these charges could see the former police officer in prison for 29 - 75 years. Prosecutors are seeking a sentence above the guideline range due to a variety of aggravated factors, including Floyd’s vulnerability, Chauvin’s abuse of authority, as well as the fact the crime was committed in front of children.

President Joe Biden, who took office in the wake of violent pro-Trump riots in the capitol last year, explained such guilty verdicts are “far too rare.”

A 2019 study found that 1 in 1000 black men can expect to be killed by police in the US. Protected by their powerful positions, police are rarely charged for excessive uses of force. Conviction rates are significantly lower for police officers even when matters go to trial.

In the lead up to Floyd’s murder, Chauvin’s superiors had ignored a litany of complaints against him. Of the 18 complaints, one included wrenching a woman out of her car during a speeding stop. Chauvin had also been involved in three police shootings. One of which was fatal. Despite this dark history, Chauvin received a commendation medal in 2008.

Earlier today, justice manifested itself in the triumphant roar of activists who had gathered on the streets throughout the US. In light of the Black Lives Matter protests that convulsed the nation in June last year, one can only imagine the backlash had the matter been found differently.

One local activist, Arlisa Delgado, told the ABC she cried when she heard the news. "I didn't know George, but he was my dad, my brother, my uncle. That could've been any black man. That could've been me," she explained as other crowd members jumped, hugged and whistled.

Although George Floyd’s case may seem distant, today’s guilty verdict could provide a chance for Australians to reflect on the racism at the core of their own criminal justice system. Aboriginal Australians and their allies have been calling for reform of Australia’s criminal justice system for decades. Indigenous people were 16.5 times more likely than non-indigenous people to die in custody between 1990 and 1995. The statistics in 2018-19 were similarly grim as Aboriginal deaths in custody remained disproportionately high, especially from preventable causes.

In a society overcome by prejudice, Chauvin’s conviction exemplifies the importance of police accountability and discipline. He will be sentenced at a later date.

If you would like to learn more about this issue, you feel you have been discriminated against, or you would like to discuss a legal matter, please don’t hesitate to call us on 8917 8700.

This Saturday 17th April, 30 members of the royal family will gather at Windsor Castle to celebrate the life of 99-year-old Prince Philip, who passed away late last week.

As the Queen mourns the loss of her husband of 75 years, some commentators are speculating that she will abdicate the thrown.

It has been reported that the monarch told her inner circle that she would grant her eldest son, Prince Charles, full power to reign when she turns 95. With the Queen’s 95th birthday on 21st  April 2021, abdication could be a matter of days away.

The Queen’s choice to step down would trigger the Regency Act, which would give Prince Charles the title of “Prince Regent.” This title would allow the Prince of Wales to rule as “King in all but name” while the monarch still lives.

In order for the Act to be triggered, however, a group of nominated officials must declare that the Queen is incapable of making decisions independently. It is therefore likely that the Prince of Wales would assume the Queen’s royal duties, while retaining his current title.

Despite these rumours, the Queen has long maintained that she plans to serve for the full duration of her life. At 21 years old, Queen Elizabeth pledged that her whole life would be devoted to the service of the Commonwealth, “whether it be long or short.”

As the oldest serving state leader in the world, Queen Elizabeth II has undoubtedly proven her commitment to that promise.

Although it doesn’t seem that the Queen will invoke the Regency Act, her advancing age, coupled with the crippling loss of her partner, could soon mark the end of a reign that will be remembered for centuries.

If you would like more information, or you would like to discuss a legal matter, please don’t hesitate to call us on 8917 8700.

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