ARTICLE · 17 APRIL 2013

Bullying in the workplace and flexibility arrangement amendments

Sparke Helmore Lawyers

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Two areas addressed by the new Fair Work Amendment Bill include bullying at work and flexibility arrangement amendments.

AustraliaEmployment and HR

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On 21 March 2013, the Fair Work Amendment Bill was introduced to Parliament in response to a parliamentary inquiry by the House of Standing Committee on Education and Employment. It is expected that these amendments will take effect on 1 July 2013.

Two of the areas that the Bill addresses that employers should take note of are the bullying at work and flexibility arrangement amendments.

Bullying amendments

The Bill defines bullying at work as repeated behaviour that is unreasonable and creates a risk to the health and safety of a worker or group of workers by an individual or group. Curiously, this definition suggests that one-off acts of bullying will not be included in this definition.

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