Nearly half of Australian workers are stressed as workplace bullying persists
Gallup’s latest State of the Global Workplace report finds that 48% of Australian workers experienced a lot of stress the previous day in 2023, as the country continues to crack down on bullying and harassment in the workplace. In addition to high levels of stress, 20% say they felt sad, and 15% felt angry the prior day.
The report reveals that just 21% of Australian employees are engaged at work, and 12% are actively disengaged. This lack of engagement could cost Australian companies over $220 billion annually in lost opportunity, equating to 9% of the nation’s GDP.
Globally, employee engagement stagnated at 23% in 2023 after multiple years of steady gains. The majority of the world’s employees continue to struggle at work and in life, with direct consequences for organisational productivity.
The report finds that 74% of Australian workers see now as a good time to find a job, and many employees are eyeing the exits. Nearly 44% say they are watching for or actively seeking a new job. This could represent a significant concern for many employers, as a 2023 Jobs and Skills Australia analysis of current skills shortages notes that 36% of occupations assessed are in a national shortage.
Kerri-Anne Kennerley says unlawful behaviour is entrenched at Nine network
Two more managers at Nine have been accused of sexual harassment and bullying by a former female staff member. As reported by The Australian, the claims came through the network’s current independent review into workplace culture, in which the men were accused of “predatory behaviour” at end-of-year celebrations at Nine’s then-head office in Willoughby. The alleged incidents resulted in the female staff member leaving the media giant in 2022, and the woman reportedly receiving a five-figure pay out.
It’s understood that several mistreatment complaints have been put through the internal review. The claims come as famous Nine personality, Kerri-Anne Kennerly, accused management of “bullying, foul language, intimidation and extreme behaviour”. “The management style was to pit people and shows against each other, in the assumption that would get the best out of them,” she said.
As well as a dedicated hotline, Nine will conduct an organisation-wide survey and staff will undergo sexual harassment prevention training.
Peter Costello is Pushed Out
Catherine West has replaced Peter Costello as the Chair of Nine following the resignation of Peter Costello over the weekend. West steps into the role after Costello allegedly “assaulted” journalist Liam Mendes from The Australian in Canberra airport last Thursday evening. Mendes was questioning Costello about former senior news boss at Nine Darren Wick, who has been accused of “alleged inappropriate behaviour” towards female journalists.
West takes over as Chair at a tumultuous time for Nine. Not only is Nine’s share price down 29% over the past year, but the media company is dealing with fresh allegations involving former senior news boss Darren Wick, who is being accused of sexually harassing female journalists. When these allegations emerged last week, Nine announced it would conduct an external independent review for the news and current affairs team.
The executives also said a dedicated hotline to report workplace sexual harassment would be available for employees, and all workers at Nine are now required to completed refreshed sexual harassment prevention training.
Employers lose more than 655,000 days of work to mental health claims
About 155,000 Australian employers are collectively losing more than 655,000 days of work each year to workplace mental health injuries amid a surge in claims about work-related harassment and bullying.
According to new data from insurer Allianz Australia, workers took an average of 76 days off work for each compensation claim primarily linked to a mental health condition in 2023.
Manager fired without notice for fighting with superior
The Fair Work Commission (FWC) recently dealt with an unfair dismissal case involving a worker who was terminated from his employment after alleged misconduct at a meeting. The worker, who was employed as a construction manager, lodged an application with the FWC seeking a remedy for his dismissal, which he claimed was unfair.
The case brought to light several important issues in employment law, including the grounds for summary dismissal, the role of procedural fairness in termination decisions, and the importance of clear communication and documentation in managing employee performance and conduct. The decision also highlighted the challenges that can arise when personal conflicts and disagreements between employees escalate into formal complaints and disciplinary action.
The worker started full-time employment with the employer as a project manager in September 2022 and was promoted to construction manager in May 2023. The employer raised several issues with the worker’s conduct and performance, including inappropriate communication with colleagues and customers, which allegedly had a financial impact on the company and damaged its reputation. However, these alleged issues were not flagged with the worker as reasons for dismissal, nor was evidence provided of the warnings, aside from the operations manager’s statement.
The main reason relied upon by the employer for the worker’s dismissal stemmed from a meeting on 11 September 2023, where the worker allegedly swore at and berated the general manager in the presence of other employees. “The worker’s conduct did not amount to any form of misconduct or serious misconduct during the meeting on 11 September 2023. [The employer’s] evidence did not provide a reliable or credible account of events.” The FWC also noted that the general manager’s dissatisfaction with the worker questioning her work, and her threat to resign, appeared to be the main driver behind the decision to dismiss the worker.
During cross-examination, the operations manager acknowledged that the general manager had threatened to resign if the worker was not dismissed and that she was asked to draft the worker’s dismissal letter despite being the complainant in the matter. The Commission emphasised the importance of procedural fairness in dismissal decisions, as highlighted in previous cases, such as Smith v Bank of Queensland Ltd, where it was stated that the dismissal must be a justifiable response to the relevant conduct or issue of capacity.
In conclusion, the FWC found that the worker’s dismissal was unfair, as the employer had not provided a valid reason for the termination. “The way the dismissal was sprung on to the [worker] demonstrated a lack of common courtesy or respect,” the FWC said. Thus, it ordered the employer pay the sum of $71,187.07 to the worker.
The Commission’s decision underscores the need for employers to ensure that dismissal decisions are based on well-founded reasons and are procedurally fair.
WA opposition leader denies bullying former Nationals colleague
The WA Nationals leader Shane Love has “absolutely” denied allegations of bullying raised by one of his now former members. At the end of the final sitting, before state parliament rose for a six-week break yesterday, upper house MP for the Southwest region Louise Kingston announced she had resigned her membership of the Nationals to sit as an independent. Ms Kingston used parliamentary privilege to accuse Mr Love of “relentless bullying and harassment”, saying through tears that leaving the party was an “agonising decision” made in the hope it would “protect others from what I have endured”.
Speaking on his way into a WA Farmers conference, Mr Love said he had not been accused of bullying before. “Of course, such an accusation would make you reflect. I can think of nothing that I’ve done which would make Louise feel that way,” he said. “I think this is the result of a difficult and bruising pre-selection process, but we’ve gone through that, and we have now pre-selected candidates for the upper house who are great champions for regional Western Australia.” Mr Love said he had reached out to Ms Kingston after hearing she would resign but did not hear back.
Could menopause leave legislation discourage the hiring and promotion of women?
Employers across Australia may be discouraged from hiring or promoting women if menopause leave gets legislated, according to Senator Hollie Hughes. The senator made the claim at a Senate committee into issues relating to menopause and perimenopause, according to the AAP report. She asserted that women would face bias when it comes to promotion and employment if menopause-related leave is implemented. But employers that were present during the hearing disputed her claim.
On the other hand, according to Beale, there are studies where 40% of women were forced to take time off work due to pain from their periods, with an alarming 45% saying they considered retiring due to menopause. “Introducing paid reproductive leave isn’t just morally the right to do, countless studies prove the economic benefits of policy outcomes boosting women’s workplace participation for individuals and businesses,” Beale said in a statement.