Over 655,000 work days lost to burnout, work pressure, bullying
Data from Allianz reveals that the number of psychological workers’ compensation claims over the last half decade has nearly doubled with a 47.5% increase, with businesses reportedly losing over 655,000 working days due to mental health issues. The main drivers of these claims are work-related harassment, bullying, work pressure or stress and burnout, accounting for 76-78% of all Allianz primary psychological claims.
Chief General Manager of Allianz Australia, Julie Mitchell highlighted that factors such as the right to disconnect, technology enhancements and workplace diversity means that leaders must ensure their workers’ compensation policies are aligned with changing employee needs. He emphasised that organisations must understand the severity of psychological injuries in the workplace and implement policies that manage psychosocial risks and prioritise employee wellbeing.
Mitchell suggested investing in creating inclusive and empathetic spaces that build a psychologically safe workplace culture. Not only does this alleviate work pressure and potential burnout amongst employees but enables businesses to continue to thrive productively.
Victoria set to introduce new psychosocial hazard protections
The proposed Victorian regulations will recognise psychosocial hazards and create new obligations for employers to identify and control them in their workplaces.
It is anticipated the regulations will be made in October and take effect on 1 December this year. A Compliance Code will be created to guide employers on how to meet their duties under the proposed regulations.
Victoria has experienced an increase in work-related mental injuries, which represented 18% of all new WorkCover claims in 2023-24, up from 16% the previous year and 9% before 2009.
If the regulations are passed, they will bring Victoria into alignment with other Australian jurisdictions that have adopted the Commonwealth’s Model Work Health and Safety Regulations in relation to psychosocial hazards.
In house lawyer alleges sexual harassment by CEO
In house legal counsel for software company Dovetail, Bethany Lo Russo, has alleged that the co-founder and CEO of the company, Benjamin Humphrey, pressured her into a sexual relationship, forced non-consensual sexual activity and engaged in victimising conduct.
Documents filed in the Federal Court reveal Lo Russo’s contention that Humphrey took advantage of the power imbalance existing between the pair and ‘relentlessly’ pursued a sexual relationship with her, exercising a ‘high degree of coercive control’. Among sexual assaults alleged include at a work Christmas party and after hours at the Dovetail office.
Lo Russo has also claimed that Humphrey sent several messages to the broader team that were unjustifiably critical of her ability and work, and that Dovetail breached an implied term in her contract of employment to provide a safe workplace and its duty of care to provide a safe system of work.
Humphrey has denied that the relations were non-consensual.
Unfair dismissal case involving prominent charitable organisation
The FWC recently dealt with an unfair dismissal case where a store manager challenged her dismissal from charitable organisation St Vincent de Paul following allegations of inappropriate workplace conduct. She argued that an investigation into her behaviour was flawed and that the complaints against her were orchestrated.
The organisation’s HR department received complaints from five employees in May and June 2024, following which the manager was suspended whilst an investigation commenced. Multiple duty managers provided evidence about the store manager’s inappropriate interactions with volunteers who had special needs. One incident involved the store manager publicly criticising a volunteer with autism spectrum disorder, describing how “customers were in shock” and the volunteer was visibly distressed.
The FWC ultimately concluded that the dismissal was not harsh, unjust or unreasonable, but a proportional response to the employee’s conduct. It emphasised the context of a charitable retail environment, stating that employers in this space must have high standards of behaviour and not tolerate inappropriate conduct, particularly toward volunteers with special needs.
NSW nurses deregistered after anti-semitic comments
Two nurses from Bankstown Hospital in NSW will no longer be able to practise their profession in Australia after making anti-Semitic comments about Israeli patients. They made the comments in a viral video, including words to the effect that they would not treat an Israeli patient seeking care.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council of NSW immediately suspended the registrations of the nurses following the incident. Their suspension underscores the professional consequences faced by employees who engage in hateful or discriminatory speech and the need for employers to take measures to prevent and deal with such conduct.
Cultural problems at Ambulance Victoria
A parliamentary inquiry into Ambulance Victoria has reportedly received complaints about cultural problems plaguing the organisation, including sexual harassment.
One complainant stated that a fellow paramedic ‘physically, emotionally and sexually’ harassed them, requiring an intervention order by Victoria Police, following which the perpetrator was allowed back into the workforce. Another submission warned that the emergency service was “crumbling” and there were serious issues with morale and burnout amongst paramedics.
Cultural problems were reported to be particularly prevalent in senior leadership, stemming from a disconnection between the managers and their staff. The inquiry is ongoing, with submissions closing 28 February.
Deed of release prohibits appealing unfair dismissal case
A former law lecturer at Swinburne University of Technology has had his appeal dismissed by a full bench of the FWC in relation to a general protections application in which he contended that the university had unfairly ended his employment.
The dispute arose after Dr Benjamin Gussen entered into a deed of release with the university, by which he resigned from employment and released Swinburne from all ‘suits, actions, claims and/or demands’ arising out of or in connection with the circumstances of a disciplinary process. The FWC initially found that the disciplinary process did not force Gussen to resign, nor was his resignation procured by the result of Swinburne’s unconscionable conduct or duress.
Gussen submitted it was in the public interest to bring an appeal as it involved ‘allegations of fraudulent practices, affecting the public’s confidence in the legal profession and the judiciary’, adding that it was in the public interest to protect whistle-blowers, ensure procedural fairness, protect employment rights and examine the use of deeds of release ‘to undermine employees’ workplace rights’.
On appeal, the FWC upheld the original decision, stating that Dr Gussen no longer had a valid claim under the general protections provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) as a result of entering into the deed.
Brutal email leaked firm wide at Slater and Gordon
An email which bcc’d all staff at law firm Slater and Gordon contained a spreadsheet revealing the salaries of over 900 staff and allegations of dysfunction at the firm. The email was purportedly written by outgoing acting chief people officer Mari Ruiz-Matthyssen, which is denied by the firm.
The email described the firm as a ‘textbook case of dysfunction’ and critiqued several key staffers as ‘lazy and ‘disloyal’. A spokesperson for the firm has noted that the contents of the email ‘include a range of disparaging remarks about individuals’ and are ‘incorrect and in many ways a work of fiction’.
It is understood that the matter is being investigated by the firm and that Ruiz-Matthyssen intends to report the incident to the police.
Industry releases psychosocial code of conduct
The media, marketing and advertising industry has released a Psychosocial Safety Code of Conduct to help employers identify, assess and reduce risks associated with work-related stress. The framework aims to distil the regulatory requirements into practical, industry-specific guidance tailored to the unique dynamics of the advertising supply chain. Key features of the code include:
- Clear industry-wide responsibilities for media agencies, creative agencies, clients and media owners.
- A structured approach to consultation, cooperation and coordination within the advertising supply chain.
- Guidance on integrating psychosocial safety into client-agency contracts to ensure compliance from the outset.
- Practical steps for hazard identification, management, and resolution in fast-paced, high-stakes work environments.
Discrimination concerns for Catholic Education Tasmania
Catholic Education Tasmania has revealed that job applicants’ sexual orientation and relationship status are considered in employment decisions. Equality Tasmania has pointed out that this practice may be a breach of the Tasmanian Anti-Discrimination Act, which prohibits discrimination on the ground of various attributes, including sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, marital status and relationship status.
However, the federal Sex Discrimination Act enables education institutions established for religious purposes to discriminate in employment based on sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or relationship status, or pregnancy “in order to avoid injury to the religious susceptibilities of adherents of that religion or creed”. According to Equality Australia:
- Catholic schools are “overwhelmingly silent” on LGBTQ+ inclusion.
- Independent schools, particularly non-denominational Christian schools, are “more likely to be discriminatory” rather than affirming places for LGBTQ+ people.
- As many as one in three independent schools require staff to be “practising” Christians, which reduces employment opportunities by almost 33% for LGBTQ+ people and others.
- Teachers have been dismissed or refused employment due to their sexual orientation.
- Similar cases exist in relation to those who have become pregnant out of wedlock or with the assistance IVF, as well as those who married a divorcee.
Lecturer sacked for sexual harassment
Sisitha Jayasinghe, a lecturer at the University of Tasmania claimed he was unfairly dismissed when the university found that he had sexually harassed a postgraduate student. The FWC found that Jayasinghe wilfully engaged in serious misconduct and demonstrated a near total lack of insight into this conduct, factors which outweighed the fact that the dismissal involved procedural failings.
The FWC found that Jayasinghe had pursued the student to accept a research assistant job with him and then “relentlessly pursued” a personal relationship with her through extensive and “overly familiar” WhatsApp messages. Jayasinghe bought the student an expensive bottle of perfume, invited her to his home and for a drive, sat at a bar where she worked for several hours and engaged in repeated physical touching during multiple gym sessions. The Commission also found that Jayasinghe asked the student to kiss and hug him, as well as making comments such as “I think you’re sexy. I think you could start an OnlyFans” and “you collaborate with me on research papers, but you won’t collaborate in the bedroom with me.” After making a sexual harassment complaint, the student lost her research job and had to restart her honours project.
Despite a finding that the university’s investigation lacked procedural fairness and contained errors, the Commissioner found that Jayasinghe had clearly engaged in sexual harassment, such that the dismissal was not unfair.
Psychosocial risk and DEI
Recent political discussions have given rise to speculation as to the future of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs in Australian businesses. The model Safe Work Australia Code of Practice “Sexual and gender-based harassment” provides practical guidance to PCBUs on how to achieve the standards of work health and safety required under the current legislation, and effective ways to identify and manage risks. The Code of Practice expressly identifies “lack of diversity in the business or undertaking” and “power imbalances along gendered lines” as factors that increase the likelihood of sexual and gender-based harassment.
Understanding these issues and implementing systems to address a lack of diversity, are ways to mitigate the risk of sexual harassment. The express recognition of sexual and gender-based harassment as a psychosocial risk should be considered by employers when reviewing their DEI programs.
Ultimately, employers should ask whether their organisation’s DEI program is consistent with their obligation to implement effective control measures to mitigate the risk of sexual and gender-based harassment that are reasonably practicable in the circumstances.
New action plan to protect doctors mental health
A new action plan has been launched in Sydney with the goal of protecting the mental health of doctors and medical students. The action plan serves as an implementation tool for the ‘Every Doctor, Every Setting’ (EDES) Framework, and outlines the following target areas:
- Improving training and work environments to reduce risks to mental health and wellbeing.
- Increasing the capacity of the sector to respond to doctors and medical trainees needing support.
- Strengthening the support provided to doctors and medical students impacted by mental ill-health.
The plan underscores the many challenges doctors and medical students face in the workplace including burnout, job strain, and mental health concerns. The implementation of policies and frameworks that support the psychosocial health and safety of medical professionals is being urged by doctors and students across the nation following the mistreatment of junior doctors in public hospitals coming under recent spotlight.
Employee alleges she was fired after affair with boss
The council of the ACT Law Society alleged that a sole legal practitioner was guilty of either professional misconduct or unsatisfactory professional conduct for having a sexual relationship with an employee at a time when she suffered from a psychological impairment and was vulnerable.
The employer terminated the employee in July 2020 after the relationship came to a tense end. Due to a lack of evidence proving vulnerability, the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT) were not ‘satisfied, to the necessary standard, that [the employee] suffered from the alleged psychological impairment at the time of the affair’. Given the findings relating to the employee’s vulnerability, ACAT said allegations about a power imbalance fell away, and the charges were dismissed.
New sexual harassment laws for Queensland commencing soon
Provisions of the Work Health and Safety (Sexual Harassment) Amendment Regulation 2024 (QLD) are coming into effect as of March 1, requiring all employers in Queensland to implement a prevention plan to manage identified risks to the health or safety of workers, or other persons, from sexual harassment or sex or gender-based harassment at work.
Businesses are required under the legislation to consult with workers in the implementation of this plan. The plan must set out the employer’s procedure for dealing with reports of sexual harassment or sex or gender-based harassment, including how employees can report sexual harassment or sex or gender-based harassment, and how such reports will be investigated.
Failure to prepare, implement or review a prevention plan will expose employers to civil penalties, regardless of whether any sexual harassment actually occurs. Amendments to the Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 (Qld) are also commencing 1 July 2025, which introduce a positive duty on Queensland employers to eliminate unlawful discrimination and other objectional conduct.
WorkSafe investigate Nedlands council bullies
A spokesperson from the Department of Energy, Mines and Industry Regulation confirmed that WorkSafe WA has opened an investigation into the City of Nedlands, following a mass exodus of council staff in the past six months.
It is understood that 68 staff have resigned from the council in recent months, equating to half the council’s workforce. It is reported that council staff were sent surveys last month, asking if they had been bullied, subject to violence or aggression or sexually harassed. One question asked staff if they had experienced verbal abuse, arbitrary threats of punishment, ridicule, offensive messages, exclusion from workplace activities, persistent criticism or humiliation in the past year.
WorkSafe has not commented on the investigation at this point.
EEO Specialists works with organisations to enable safe and respectful workplaces. We offer a range of in-person workshops as well as online courses. If you would like to have a confidential discussion about workplace behaviour and compliance, please call Franca Sala Tenna on 0405 134 187 or email franca@equalopportunitytraining.com.au