Anne Helena O'Rourke

The race without a finishing line: legislative means for confronting bullying in the Australian workplace

In this paper we investigate the evolution of occupational health and safety (OHS) legislation aimed at harnessing workplace bullying. We begin with a brief discussion of workplace safety and literature covering workplace bullying. Then we present an overview of the development of Australian OHS legislation in recognising the influence of psychosocial hazards such as bullying. Following this we examine the Fair Work Commissions anti-bullying jurisdiction which commenced on 1 January 2014. We argue that while the new anti-bullying laws are a welcome response to the problem of workplace bullying, they offer a minimalist rather than a comprehensive remedy to the problem. We conclude that the only way to provide an adequate response is to create stand-alone legislation that recognises bullying as a criminal offence with remedies sufficiently castigatory to act as a deterrent to would-be workplace bullies and prompt proactive workplace cultural change.

Managing electronic communications: a new challenge for human resource managers

Advances in information and communication technology are not only changing the way work is conducted but also influencing the development of human resource management (HRM) as a field of practice. In order to understand how HR managers are grappling with this issue we review the misuse of electronic communication in the workplace through the international literature and also recent court and tribunal cases in Australia. In particular, we consider the impact of new communication technologies in blurring of the boundaries between home and work and the way in which this is being dealt with by HR managers. In this paper we draw out the challenge of balancing the interests of employees and organisations, and outline the tension between HR as a strategic partner and employee champion. While not advancing a dystopian view, we argue that in many workplaces new surveillance technologies are being routinely utilised to increase employer control and that such low-trust practices are likely to be counterproductive and may undermine the profession of human resources management.

The Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement and the Ratcheting-Up of Labour Standards: A Precedent Set and an Opportunity Missed

The Australian government signed a free trade agreement with the USA in 2004. There has been much commentary on the agreementmost of which has focused on the effect of the agreement on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, agricultural and manufacturing products and Australias culture through regulation of film and television content. Most analysts have missed the significance of labour rights in the agreement the inclusion of which adds a new dimension to the trade–labour linkage debate in Australia, a linkage long demanded by the unions and long rejected by the major political parties. We look at the implications of the inclusion of labour rights in the agreement in terms of future union strategies and within the context of the governments pursuit of a free trade agreement with China.

Internet and Email Monitoring in the Workplace: Time for an Alternate Approach

In this article we examine changes to the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (Cth) and the implications of those changes for the protection of workplace privacy. This examination is undertaken in the context of two factors: the absence of statutory protections for employee privacy in the workplace; and the development of sophisticated human resource management practices and increasing individualization of workplace relationships. We argue that instead of eroding privacy rights in the workplace, the federal government should implement a legal regime that poses the least threat to employees’ dignity and rights to privacy in the context of work.