Fair Treatment

The University aims to ensure that all staff and students are treated fairly and enjoy a work and study environment that is free from discrimination, bullying, harassment and vilification.

The Fair Treatment Policy and associated Guidelines for Staff and Student Grievance Resolution Process encompasses discrimination, sexual harassment, harassment, bullying, racism, and vilification and integrates these often overlapping issues into one easy to understand and use policy framework.

• What is the Fair Treatment Policy?
• What is unfair treatment?
• Examples of unfair treatment
• How to support a fair treatment environment
• How to deal with unfair treatment
• Awareness of unfair treatment
• Making a complaint to an external agency
• Advice
• Further Information

What is the Fair Treatment Policy?

All members of the University Community have a right to, and responsibility for creating, a fair, safe and productive work and study environment.

The Fair Treatment Policy:

• informs all members of the University Community of their rights and obligations
• sets standards of behaviour in accordance with legal requirements
• addresses the consequences of breaches of the Policy.

What is unfair treatment?

Under the Policy unfair treatment includes:

• Bullying – the persistent and ongoing ill treatment of a person that victimises, humiliates, undermines or threatens that person.
  This should not be confused with a manager's right to properly exercise their authority in a professional manner to give legitimate direction, performance appraisals and to deal with complaints.

• Discrimination – occurs when a person is treated less favourably than others on the grounds of age, disability or medical condition, race, sex or sexuality, marital status, religion, political opinion, criminal record (when irrelevant), trade union activity, pregnancy or family responsibilities.
  It also includes indirect discrimination – when a rule, policy or practice has an adverse effect or result on a person or group and it is not reasonable in the circumstances.

• Harassment – unwelcome, offensive, humiliating or intimidating behaviour or comments aimed at a person or group that makes the person or group feel belittled, intimidated, insulted and/or offended.

• Sexual Harassment – unwelcome sexual behaviour where a person feels offended, intimidated or humiliated, and it is reasonable in the circumstances to feel that way.

• Victimisation – treating someone unfairly because they act on their rights under University policy or because they have supported someone else who acted on their rights.

• Vilification – occurs when a person speaks or writes in an insulting, abusive or defamatory way about or to a person or group. Vilification is commonly associated with the incitement of hatred towards a person, due to their race or religion.

Most of the behaviours described above are unlawful under State and Federal Human Rights and Equal Opportunity legislation.

Under the Fair Treatment Policy, members of the University Community are prohibited from engaging in these behaviours while on University grounds or engaged in University activities.

Examples of unfair treatment

Bullying

Commonly reported forms of bullying include humiliation through sarcasm, unwarranted criticism, innuendo and deliberate exclusion. Examples of bullying in the workplace include: undermining or deliberately impeding a person's work or spreading malicious gossip about a person that is not true.

Discrimination

Age – preferring a job applicant on the basis of the assumed attributes of their age group – ‘all young people are not experienced’ or ‘all older people are set in their ways’.

Disability or Medical Condition – not employing a person with a disability because of the cost of providing special equipment to accommodate that person’s disability in the workplace.

Race – not hiring a person for a job because of their nationality or ethnic origin.

Sex and sexuality – requiring a specified period of continuous service for promotion (this could discriminate against women as they are more likely to have interruptions to their working lives to have children).

Refusing to engage in a work project with another staff member because of their sexual orientation.

Family responsibility – continually setting meetings outside the normal span of hours so that attendance impacts on family responsibilities.

Harassment

Making disparaging remarks in a meeting about the abilities of one gender over another or one race over another.

Sexual harassment

Sending unwelcome emails with sexually offensive or graphic material, smutty jokes or comments.

Victimisation

Treating a staff member unfavourably because they have made a complaint of discrimination.

How to support a fair treatment environment

• speak up at the time and make it clear when behaviour is unacceptable
• listen and respond when asked to modify behaviour
• assist people who are affected by breaches of the Policy
• support people who are affected by breaches of the Fair Treatment Policy and encourage them to take action
• promote mutual respect and consideration between all members of the University Community
• openly support and promote the Fair Treatment Policy
• circulate Fair Treatment Policy and make it clear that compliance is obligatory (for educators and supervisors)
• complete appropriate Equity and Diversity training (for staff)
• do not engage in discrimination, harassment, bullying, vilification and victimisation.

How to deal with unfair treatment

• Discuss the matter directly with the person causing the concern; explain the impact on you and ask that the behaviour stops. This isn’t always easy and you may want to seek advice on how to do this from Human Resources.

• Seek advice from Human Resources on making a complaint through the University's Complaints by Staff Policy and Guidelines. The Policy and Guidelines include informal and formal resolution processes.

• Complaints relating to unfair treatment involving students are handled through the Student Grievance Resolution Process.

Awareness of unfair treatment

In many cases of bullying, harassment and discrimination people often ‘didn't mean to offend’. It is sometimes difficult to know how our behaviour affects others. If in doubt, think before you speak or act, reflect after an event where your behaviour or intent may have been misunderstood and seek to rectify the situation, and seek advice.

Making a complaint to an external agency

Members of the University Community who believe the University’s fair treatment procedures have not produced a satisfactory resolution retain the right to lodge a complaint with an external agency such as the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission or the Equal Opportunity Commission.

Criminal behaviour

Where criminal behaviour such as sexual violence, physical assault, obscene communications and stalking has occurred the complaint should be taken to the police.

Advice

A staff member seeking advice on unfair treatment should contact Human Resources on 8303 5666.

Staff may also seek advice from:

• The Equity Project Officer – 8303 4824
• Human Resources Service Centre - 8313 1111

For fair treatment issues relating to students seek advice from Student Policy and Appeals on 8303 7503 or 8303 7572.

Further Information

If you would like a pamphlet on the Fair Treatment Policy please contact the Equity Project Officer.

The information provided above is a summary only. For full details see:

• Fair Treatment Policy
• Fair Treatment Guidelines for Staff
• Student Grievance Resolution Process
• Complaints by Staff Policy and Guidelines
• Staff Code of Conduct
• Fair Treatment Checklist for Managers