From 1 August 2023, all businesses are required to pay their employees up to 10-days paid Family and Domestic Violence Leave. In November 2022, the Australian Government made significant changes to the Fair Work Act 2009 (“the Act”) and the National Employment Standards in November 2022 through the Fair Work Amendment (Paid Family and Domestic Violence Leave) Act 2022. This is an increase from the previous entitlement under the National Employment Standards which only entitled employees to 5 days of unpaid leave.

A blended family matter on Sydney’s Northern Beaches

Family law matters can be complicated and emotionally challenging, and for Michelle (name changed for privacy), her journey began as no exception.

Michelle had initially been married with two children. After that relationship ended, the pair shared custody of the kids as she began a relationship and soon married a new man. With two kids of his own, together they lived as a blended family in a home they bought on Sydney’s Northern Beaches.

Surveillance in the workplace, is largely an accepted and understood part of the Australian workplace in some way, shape or form. The most common form of workplace surveillance would be by camera but it is not limited to this.

There has recently been a change to the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) that all employers and business owners need to be aware of.

Domestic abuse manifests in various ways, from physical and verbal abuse to financial exploitation. A less visible but equally harmful form is coercive control, where one party uses manipulative tactics to dominate their partner. This behavior, though challenging to identify, can range from threats and surveillance to social isolation and financial manipulation.

A recent Victorian Supreme court case showcasing how unconscious bias can lead to legal action against an employer under anti-discrimination legislation. It highlights the need for employers to be aware of potential grounds for anti-discrimination lawsuits and take proactive measures to prevent and address discrimination, especially in light of recent legislative changes imposing a positive duty on employers to eliminate unlawful sex discrimination, including sexual harassment, through reasonable and proportionate measures.

Learn exactly what financial abuse entails, how to identify if you or someone you know is experiencing financial abuse and the steps that can be taken to address the situation.

A recent Fair Work Commission decision over in the ACT allowed MSS Security to use telephone recordings of an employee to defend the employee’s unfair dismissal claim. Their decision hinged on the inclusion of a surveillance clause in the employee’s contract. While ACT based, the case does highlight the importance of understanding your state’s legislation about workplace surveillance so that you can feel protected at work and can raise any concerns you have about privacy and safety.

Dying intestate in Australia is generally a bad idea, both from the point of having no control over the distribution of your estate and because there is no Federal legislation governing intestacy; how it is handled will vary state to state. It’s important for people of all ages to create a will so they can dictate what happens to their assets and make it simpler for their families to navigate and handle their estate.

Recently, there was a fascinating case of alleged workplace bullying heard by the Fair Work Commission. The case concerned Mr Wang, a guest service agent at a Hilton Hotel in Darwin and his superior, Ms Lin, the Guest Relations Manager. Mr Wang alleged that Ms Lin had bullied him while at work and through social media outside of work. He decided to take legal action against Darwin International Hotels Pty Ltd after the Hilton Darwin HR Manager, Ms Jackson, dismissed his concerns that Ms Lin had bullied him and when he was subsequently passed over for a promotion.

When hiring someone, employers might hesitate to ask questions about someone’s medical history due to privacy concerns or the risk of a discrimination claim. What if the condition effects their ability to perform the role? Does the employee have a duty of disclosure, and if so, to what extent?

Earlier this week the Attorney General released a draft of the Family Law Amendment Bill 2023. The Bill is an ambitious overhaul of several key sections of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Act 2021 (Cth), that aims to improve the current Family Law System

Testamentary trusts are one of the more obscure branches of estate planning and, at first glance, appear to be very complex and only appropriate for niche situations. In truth, testamentary trusts are far less daunting than they first appear and offer a multitude of benefits for your beneficiaries, while also allowing you more control over your estate than a run of the mill will would allow. 

What does this mean for your workplace?

When dealing with sexual harassment in the workplace, the onus has largely been on victims to make a complaint. The process is often traumatising and many victims either decide to withdraw the complaint or not make the complaint at all. The recent incidents in our own Federal Parliament can testify to the private and public anguish it can cause.

Many workers seek flexible working arrangements so that they can achieve work/life balance and juggle their other responsibilities outside workplace. However, what happens when such a request clashes with the operational needs of the business? What if it impacts business productivity?

The Crimes Legislation Amendment (Coercive Control) Bill 2022 (NSW) passed parliament on Wed 16 Nov 2022. It creates a dedicated offence for coercive control under the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW).

In today’s modern age of smartphones, smartwatches and other electronic devices, recording audio and video in real-time is ever easier. The cost of installing recording devices in the home and business premises has also gone down. Given the prominence of such devices in our daily lives, questions about privacy and limitation of their use comes into question. For example, can we record private conversations? Can we use them as evidence in a dispute?

In April 2022, the High Court heard a case concerning the mental health of an employee and the employer’s duty to their employee. In Kozarov v State of Victoria, Ms Kozarov suffered post-traumatic stress disorder because of the type of cases she dealt with as part of the Victorian Office of Public Prosecution’s Specialist Sexual Offences Unit. She sued the Office of Public Prosecution (OPP) because they had failed their duty of care and the case ended up before the High Court.

In May 2022, the FWC completed their four yearly review of the modern awards, including consideration of whether modern awards should be varied to include paid FDV leave. As part of its review the FWC made significant findings in relation to FDV:

When you think of domestic violence, the first thing that comes to mind is most likely physical or verbal abuse. However, domestic violence includes a wide variety of acts and behaviours, many of which you may not be aware of. One example of this is coercive control.