Employment law

In any organisation positions may become redundant and so the business faces the challenge of redeploying employees or potentially terminating their employment. Here we look at a change management process by which redundancies can be implemented whilst minimising your exposure and ensuring fairness.

It is vital that businesses continually assess and reassess business risks and the mechanisms in place to deal with those risks. Usually, this is a relatively straightforward exercise when it concerns “physical” risks—such as fire or trip hazards. However, it is just as important that non-tangible risks within a workplace are identified, monitored and eradicated or at the very least minimised.

There are over 900 million active users of Facebook and more than 140 million users on Twitter. Social media is abuzz, and it is infiltrating the workplace. Employers must be ready to address social media issues at work and must introduce appropriate procedures to avoid litigation in this area.

Mergers, acquisitions and corporate restructure: employment issues to be considered Greg Robertson and Kit Yap

It is perhaps an inevitable fact of corporate life that employers will, sooner or later, need to carry out an investigation—formal or informal—into some aspect of behaviour at their workplace

As part of a national ‘OHS harmonisation’ initiative, the Commonwealth and each State and Territory have agreed to amend their OHS legislation so that each is consistent with the national Model Work Health Safety legislation (“Model WHS legislation”)

Employers should be aware that recent amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act broaden their obligations to employees and other workers. These amendments relate to family responsibilities, breastfeeding and sexual harassment.

Workplace diversity is shaping to be a talking point for companies in 2011, as boards prepare to comply with the ASX Corporate Governance Council’s (Council) revised ASX Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations (Principles).

The recent claim against David Jones Ltd and its former CEO, Mark McInnes, by a female employee of the corporation has prompted an outpouring of opinion from a range of commentators. A number of those commentators have been lawyers. The commentary on the case has displayed a level of confusion in the profession, particularly about the law relating to exemplary damages in Australia.

By Joanna Howe, current Rhodes Scholar and graduate-at-law, Harmers Workplace Lawyers. Recent high profile sexual harassment cases demonstrate why employers need to ensure they have taken all reasonable steps to eliminate sexual harassment from their workplace.

During the global financial crisis, the media was awash with stories of executives 'gambling' with corporate funds, shareholders left with shares worth nothing and families suffering because of the crisis.

By Lesley Maclou and James Robertson from Harmers Workplace Lawyers. The Paid Parental Leave Act 2010 ("Act") providing for the long anticipated historic Federal paid parental leave scheme commenced on 1 October 2010, having been passed in June this year by both houses of parliament.

Authors: Greg Robertson and Joanna Howe Harmers Workplace Lawyers Australia has just learnt of the election outcome with the news that Labor has brokered an agreement with the Greens and Independents in order to form government.

By Joanna Howe, current Rhodes Scholar and graduate at law, Harmers Workplace Lawyers. The suicide of cafe worker Brodie Panlock, which followed a year of workplace bullying, is a pointed reminder to employers of their obligation to protect the mental health of their workers.