CASE STUDIES

Lawful Sexual Activity

A woman complained to the Commission that she was terminated from her employment because she was a lesbian. She said even though the organisation knew she was a lesbian when they appointed her, members of staff made comments about how she would be accepted in the community because of the way she dressed.

The respondent claimed she was terminated after normal probation assessment, and that her work performance was unsatisfactory.

In conciliation, the parties agreed that there was a lack of communication about issues to do with behaviour and dress, which resulted in the woman feeling isolated in the workplace. The respondents provided a written apology to the complainant for the hurt and stress she alleged. A conciliated agreement was entered into by the parties.

Vicarious Liability

The Commission received a complaint of sexual harassment from a woman.

The individual respondent to the complaint denied the allegations. The complainant’s employer stated that they were not liable for the actions of the individual respondent as they were not his employer. They stated that the contract they had with the individual respondent was for the use of office facilities and that there was no employment relationship between them, therefore they could not be held vicariously liable for the allegations against the individual. After considering the nature of the contract between the respondents, the Commission held that they could be held jointly liable for the complaint with the individual respondent.

The Commission then convened a conciliation conference between the complainant, the individual respondent and the second respondent. The complaint was settled by way of separate agreements between the parties. The complainant and the individual respondent signed an agreement which involved the payment of $2,500 in compensation. The complainant and the second respondent signed a separate agreement which involved the payment of $3000 in compensation.

Race discrimination

A woman lodged a complaint with the Commission about being called racist names and being ignored in class by her tutor.

Prior to the conciliation conference, the woman said she was seeking financial compensation and an apology from the tutor. During the conference, however, she said that the meeting had provided her with the chance to explain to the tutor how much the incidents had embarrassed and hurt her.

The complaint was settled with the respondent providing a written apology and agreeing to be mindful in future of the sensitivities of students.

The Commission’s conciliators use creative solutions and a flexible process to encourage resolution of a complaint through conciliation.

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