Court cases can provide valuable insights into the way people behave at work – and lessons for everyone on how to prevent workplace disputes degenerating into bullying and discrimination. More specifically, directors of organisations should be aware of the risks of vicarious liability; when people they employ to manage others break the law. A recent […]
When an employee is accused of doing something wrong (we call them a respondent in a workplace investigation), they may lose their job or worse, their reputation. Understandably, that can put people on the defensive. They may engage in a number of strategies to minimise the consequences – from refusing to cooperate, to outright denial […]
A sub-contractor on a construction site was instructed by a lead contractor to start drilling through a wall – despite warning signs on site that indicated the risk. He hit an electrical cable and received a massive shock. Amazingly, he lived. As the dust settled, managers of several businesses involved in the project, realising the […]
I often get asked about the role of a support person in an investigative interview, so here are my responses to three of the most common questions. Do we have to have a support person present? There is no legal requirement for a support person to be present at a workplace investigative interview. The law […]
By WISE Legal Counsel Alison Page Investigators can learn a valuable lesson from an unfair dismissal decision by the full bench of the Fair Work Commission, handed down in March 2013. Although the case was concerned with the application of regulations in the child care industry, it is a timely reminder not to make assumptions, […]
A woman suffered a vicious rape in London. There was little information to work with after the initial investigation. The victim had been drinking heavily before the attack and she believed there was little chance of the rapist being caught, let alone convicted. She seemed unable and unwilling to provide important details of what had […]
by WISE mediator Anna Faoagali Mediation – A Case Study Steve worked in a young, fast-growing technology business as a team leader. When the post of manager in his department became vacant, the CEO asked him to fill in while they head-hunted for the right person. Steve had worked at the company almost since it […]
HARRIET STACEY on an age-old dilemma for investigators – even as technology makes it all so much easier. Regardless of recent technological developments that enable reliable digital audio recording without great expense – and mass access to MP3 and MP4 files and transcription programs – workplace investigators still dwell on this question: to audio record […]
Well done to the staff from Uniting Care Children, Young People and Families (UCCYPF) who did their assessments for the Certificate IV in Government Investigations just before Christmas. These staff are the first cohort from UCCYPF who will be trained by WISE to conduct workplace investigations and build the organisations capacity to respond to complaints […]
Even though the Sex Discrimination Act was introduced in 1984, AHRC’s recent report on its survey on the prevalence of sexual harassment in the workplace, shows that sexual harassment remains widespread and efforts to curb this behaviour have stalled. AHRC’s report Working without fear: Results of the sexual harassment national telephone survey 2012 shows that […]