ARTICLE · 03 DECEMBER 2020

Sexual harassment met with aggravated damages

Coleman Greig Lawyers

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Employers must provide effective anti-discrimination and harassment policies to enable fair and lawful investigations.

AustraliaEmployment and HR

Laure Kenworthy

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Recently, the Tasmanian Anti-Discrimination Tribunal ("the Tribunal") in Lucy Orchard v Frayne Higgins [2020] TASADT 11 (1 September 2020) made an aggravated damages order against a Toll Transport courier for sexually harassing a Sanity store manager and then serving her with a retaliatory defamation letter after she lodged an internal complaint about his behaviour.

Sexual harassment defined

Under s28A of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth), a person sexually harasses another person, if:

the person makes an unwelcome sexual advance, or an unwelcome request for sexual favours, to the person harassed; and/or,
engages in other unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature in relation to the person harassed.

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