ARTICLE · 13 NOVEMBER 2013

Pregnancy discrimination tops Fair Work Ombudsman’s list

Marque Lawyers

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The FWO's 2012-13 annual report reveals that pregnancy discrimination has topped the list of discrimination complaints.

AustraliaEmployment and HR

Louise Rumble (Formerly With Marque Lawyers)

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The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) 2012-13 annual report reveals that pregnancy discrimination topped the list of discrimination complaints for the first time. The majority of complaints have previously related to physical or mental disability.

The FWO report is timely. The new "family-friendly measures" which were introduced as part of the recent amendments to the Fair Work Act took effect on 1 July 2013. See our related article here.

Those measures include an express right for parents returning from leave in relation to the birth or adoption of a child to request part-time employment. Significantly the right is to make the request; falling short of an actual right to part-time employment. That said, the "right to request" is a step towards acknowledging the realities of balancing work and family responsibilities.

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