bsbpmg506a manage project human resources hrm legal frameworks in australia as soon as you are...

BSBPMG506A Manage Project Human Resources

HRM Legal Frameworks in Australia

• As soon as you are responsible for the management of people, you need to ensure that you are aware of and comply with all relevant Human Resource Management legal frameworks

• There are various national, state, industry and organisation specific regulations including –

Federal LegislationFederal Regulations and GuidelinesState LegislationState Regulations and GuidelinesIndustry Specific Regulations and GuidelinesOrganisational Policies and Procedures


HRM Legal Frameworks in Australia

• As a people manager you can be held personally liable for breaches of legislation, regulations, guidelines and organisational policies and procedures.

• It is common knowledge that you can be convicted for not complying with HRM legislation and regulations, but recent cases have set precedents for court action where organisational policies and procedures have not been correctly followed.

• If your organisation has documented HRM policies and procedures that are not being followed, then legal action can be taken against the organisation and people leaders who have not implemented the policies and procedures correctly.


Fair Work Act 2009

• On 1 July 2009 Fair Work Australia began operations as part of a new national workplace relations system underpinned by the Fair Work Act 2009.

• Some of the significant changes in major areas such as -Agreement making Assistance for the low-paid Dismissal Dispute resolution General protections Good faith bargaining Industrial action—no formal start of bargaining Minimum wage setting National Employment Standards

• Visit www.fwa.gov.au for further information


Federal Discrimination Legislation

• The federal Parliament has passed a number of laws which aim to protect people from discrimination in public life and from breaches of their human rights -

Age Discrimination Act 2004 Disability Discrimination Act 1992 Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986 Race Discrimination Act 1975 Sex Discrimination Act 1984

• The Australian Human Rights Commission administers these laws. They have the authority to investigate and conciliate complaints of discrimination and human rights breaches

• Visit www.hreoc.gov.au for further information


Age Discrimination

• The Age Discrimination Act 2004 helps to ensure that people are not treated less favourably on the ground of age in various areas of public life including:

employment provision of goods and services education administration of Commonwealth laws and programs

• The Act also provides for positive discrimination – that is, actions which assist people of a particular age who experience a disadvantage because of their age


Disability Discrimination

• The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 has as its major objectives to

eliminate discrimination against people with disabilities promote community acceptance of the principle that people

with disabilities have the same fundamental rights as all members of the community, and

ensure as far as practicable that people with disabilities have the same rights to equality before the law as other people in the community.


Race Discrimination

• The Racial Discrimination Act 1975 gives effect to Australia's obligations under the International Convention on the elimination of all forms of racial discrimination.

• Its major objectives are to - promote equality before the law for all persons, regardless of

their race, colour or national or ethnic origin, and make discrimination against people on the basis of their

race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin unlawful.


Sex Discrimination

• The Sex Discrimination Act 1984 gives effect to Australia's obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and certain aspects of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention 156

• Its major objectives are to -promote equality between men and women eliminate discrimination on the basis of sex, marital status or

pregnancy and, with respect to dismissals, family responsibilities, and

eliminate sexual harassment at work, in educational institutions, in the provision of goods and services, in the provision of accommodation and the delivery of Commonwealth programs.


Other Federal Legislation

• Affirmative Action (Equal Employment Opportunity for Women) Act 1986

• Racial Hatred Act 1995

• Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act 1999

• Occupational Health and Safety (Commonwealth Employment) Act 1991

• Workplace Relations Act 1996

• Workplace Relations Regulations 1996

• Privacy Act 1988


State Based Legislation - NSW

• www.legislation.nsw.gov.au is the official NSW Government website for online publication of legislation and is provided and maintained by the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office

• Major NSW Human Resource legislation includes - Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 Workers Compensation Act 1987


Occupational Health and Safety

• The objectives of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 (NSW) are to -

secure and promote the health, safety and welfare of people at work protect people against workplace health and safety risks provide for consultation and cooperation between employers and

workers in achieving the objects of the Act ensure that risks are identified, assessed and eliminated or

controlled, develop and promote community awareness of occupational health

and safety issues, provide a legislative framework that allows for progressively higher

standards of occupational health and safety to take account new technologies and work practices

protect people against risks arising from the use of plant (ie. machinery, equipment or appliances).

Source - www.workcover.nsw.gov.au


Workers Compensation

• Workers compensation provides protection to workers and their employers in the event of a work related injury or disease.

• Through the workers compensation system injured workers may have an entitlement to weekly payments, lump sums for permanent impairment (and pain and suffering where applicable), payment of medical bills, provision of legal assistance to pursue a claim and intensive rehabilitation assistance

• All employers must have a workers compensation policy to insure themselves against compensation claims for workplace injuries if they pay more than $7,500 in wages, employ an apprentice or trainee, or are part of a group for premium purposes

• The NSW workers compensation system operates under the Workers Compensation Act 1987 and the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998



Workers Compensation in NSW

• The New South Wales workers compensation system comprises four elements -1. New South Wales WorkCover Scheme – which provides workers

compensation insurance through contracted Scheme Agents to employers operating in New South Wales.

2. SICorp (through the Treasury Managed Fund) – manages workers compensation, administration and financial liability for most public sector employers except those who are self-insurers.

3. Self-insurers – organisations with enough capital to underwrite, pay and manage their own claims. There are strict criteria that employers must meet prior to WorkCover granting a self-insurers licence.

4. Specialised insurers – underwrite workers compensation insurance risk for a specific industry or class of business or employers.



Bullying and Harassment

• Falls more under regulations or guidelines• Not specifically defined in legislation but normally falls

under Anti Discrimination• Bullying may not be unlawful under federal and state

anti-discrimination legislation• Can be hard to take action unless the harassment also

involves some form of obvious discrimination covered by law

• Often included in organisational HR policies and procedures

* Sourced from www.hreoc.gov.au


Bullying and Harassment

• Definition of workplace bullying is "the repeated less favourable treatment of a person by another or others in the workplace, which may be considered unreasonable and inappropriate workplace practice. It includes behaviour that intimidates, offends, degrades or humiliates a worker." (Source ACTUQ/QCCI/Qld Govt Dept of Workplace Health and Safety)

• Bullying behaviour may include - physical or verbal abuse yelling, screaming or offensive language excluding or isolating employees psychological harassment intimidation assigning meaningless tasks unrelated to the job giving employees impossible jobs deliberately changed work rosters to inconvenience particular employees undermining work performance by deliberately withholding information vital for

effective work performance * Sourced from www.hreoc.gov.au


Organisational Policies and Procedures

• Most medium and large organisations have specifically documented Human Resource Management Policies and Procedures

• These must comply with relevant legislation and be followed by all people leaders in order to avoid legal action

• Why have them?Protect workers rights and safetyAvoid legal actionAssign some of the responsibility to people leaders


Common HR Policies and Procedures

• Equal Employment Opportunity

• Occupational Health and Safety

• Recruitment and Termination

• People Management

• Poor Performance Management

• Employee complaint procedures

• There may be others….it is your job to find them and follow them!

bsbpmg506a manage project human resources hrm legal frameworks in australia as soon as you are...

Documents

disability discrimination

race discrimination

sex discrimination act

complaints of discrimination

positive discrimination

human rights breaches

age slide

procedures slide