Workplace bullying is a serious issue for both employers and employees.
Our employment lawyers provide legal advice on workplace bullying issues. We can help companies defend claims of bullying behaviour and workers that experience bullying in the workplace. Our team also help clients to investigate and manage complaints and provide advice on procedure.
Workplace bullying can take many different forms, including verbal abuse, invasive comments, physical and sexual harassment, intimidation and discrimination. It can happen between co-workers or between employees, managers, contractors and clients. It is important to seek legal advice quickly because of the impact it can have on the workplace and staff.
Contact our legal team for a confidential discussion and find out how we can help for a fixed fee.
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If you are experiencing workplace bullying, it is important to take action to protect your legal rights and well-being. The law in Australia (including the Fair Work Act) provides protection against workplace bullying.
While certain actions from management carried out in a reasonable way is not always bullying, there are many bullying behaviours that are. These include sexual harassment, mind games, communicating offensive material, asking for sexual favours or requiring a worker to carry out meaningless tasks.
Prosper Law will work closely with you to develop a confidential plan. This may include submitting a formal complaint to your employer or taking the matter to the Fair Work Commission.
An employer has a duty of care towards their workers. Workplace health and safety laws also place an obligation on businesses to maintain a safe workplace.
If you are an employer, you need to:
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to talk through your next contract, claim, or dispute.
Our lawyers have worked in building and construction throughout their careers, across Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and the UK. We understand the industry, speak your language, and take a commercial approach to legal advice.
Our fixed fee model means you get first-class legal support at a transparent price. No surprises.
When conducting a workplace investigation, it is essential to follow the correct procedures and ensure that all parties are treated fairly and with respect. Failure to do so can result in legal action and damage to your business’s reputation. A poorly conducted procedure can also impact an employer’s relationship with its workforce.
We can provide you with legal advice on the correct procedures for conducting a workplace investigation. We assist in developing an investigation plan that meets your business needs and goals.
We can also assist you with conducting witness interviews, gathering evidence, and analysing the facts of the case. We can assist you to ensure your investigation is thorough, impartial, and compliant with all relevant laws and regulations.
Our investigations will generally follow the best practice steps set out below:
An employer receives a complaint such as workplace bullying and other workplace complaints. An employer has a duty to act on the complaint including by investigating workplace complaints.
Our lawyers work with clients to identify the most cost-effective way to approach the investigation and narrow in on which allegations will be investigated. Serious allegations will be given priority, such as claims of sexual harassment or serious bullying.
It may also be necessary to stand down workers that are the subject of a complaint or temporarily move them to another location within the business.
We interview witnesses and workers, and gather correspondence, CCTV and other relevant evidence. We will also need a copy of the employment contract and any relevant policies and procedures.
Evidence may be obtained from the organisation, third parties, staff members or senior management.
Our experienced lawyers will review and analyse the evidence and carry out further fact-finding tasks (where necessary).
It is important to consider whether the evidence is reliable or whether additional information may be needed.
We will provide relevant parties with the opportunity to respond to issues identified during the investigation process.
A procedurally fair procedure also requires that decisions are made by people who are independent to issue. This is a key reason why it is helpful to engage our legal firm to manage the matter.
Subject to the strategy and scoping approach, we will make findings of fact, comment on breaches of workplace legislation, policies or procedures and provide an investigation report.
The amount of detail the report goes into will depend on the nature of the issue, the number of people involved, the amount of supporting information and other factors.
If you are an employee who has been asked to respond to allegations or participate in a workplace investigation, you may need a workplace lawyer. Our team are here to help.
We provide supportive, cost-effective legal representation for employees. We can attend meetings as a support person, assist you in responding to allegations or questions, and provide strategies to protect your rights. We understand that this can be stressful. We will strive to support you and reduce the stress of the investigation process.
We are committed to providing its clients with the highest level of legal service and representation. We will work with you to develop a legal strategy that meets your business requirements. Contact us today for a fixed fee quote for workplace investigation and legal services.
The Fair Work Commission does not often grant extensions to the 21 day time limit on unfair dismissal applications. It is important for applications to be submitted on time (even if supporting information is provided later).
An extension may be granted if a worker suffers a serious illness, is hospitalised for that period, or some other compelling and genuinely unavoidable circumstance that meant the application was not lodged on time.
Get in touch with Prosper Law’s construction lawyers to talk
through your next contract, claim, or dispute.
