Reference no: EM133030714
CASE 1 - Racist comments and sexual harassment leads to resignation
The complainant, who was of North African descent, alleged that he was subject to racist remarks from co-workers and later his supervisor. This included: calling him offensive names, such as frog , Borat , and boat person ; asking if he had spent time in a detention center; and mimicking the complainant's accent. Also, the complainant claimed that his direct supervisor commented negatively about his religious customs.
The complainant also alleged he had been subjected to sexual harassment, including making jokes about performing oral sex on his supervisor and customers to finalize sales. The complainant eventually resigned from his position after his complaints did not resolve the issues.
At conciliation, the supervisor refuted the allegations raised against him, and said that his working relationship with the complainant had initially been a positive one in which they enjoyed working together, but that the complainant had performance issues. The representative from the organization expressed his shock at the complaint and his disbelief that there was a poor workplace culture within his organization, and agreed to remedies to support staff.
The parties agreed on the following settlement during conciliation:
- a written apology by the corporate respondent
- a written statement of regret by the individual respondent
- financial compensation
- training for 250 staff on the Anti-Discrimination Act, and the internal and external complaint mechanisms available to all staff.
CASE 2 - Religion not a genuine requirement for position
A woman worked as a volunteer for the charity, St Vincent De Paul Society. The society's rules described it as an international Catholic organisation of lay people that seeks to help those who are suffering. The woman was not Catholic, but described herself as a Christian. She worked for the society for six years and during that time she had been elected president of a conference group. The society knew the woman was not Catholic when she was appointed president.
During a meeting the woman was told that not being Catholic had become a matter of contention for some members, and if she did not become Catholic, she could not continue to work for the society as president of a conference group and would have to either resign as president or resign from working for the society completely. The tribunal held that the ultimatum amounted to direct discrimination.
The tribunal considered whether the general exemption for religious bodies applied (s.109) and whether the genuine occupational exemption applied (s.25). The society was made up of 'lay faithful' and only one of its objectives was spiritual. The tribunal decided the society was not a religious body. It also concluded that inculcating the faith was not the society's primary function and it was not objectively necessary for a president to be Catholic. Spiritual roles were not a primary responsibility of a president, and the duties of a president were much more comprehensive.
The woman suffered severe depression as a result of the treatment of her by the society, and was awarded $25,000 in general damages, $500 for out-of-pocket expenses, and $2,000 for future psychiatric treatment. The tribunal declined to order the society to apologize because it acted on the basis of genuinely held beliefs.
Walsh v St Vincent de Paul Society Queensland (No. 2) [2008] QADT 32 (12 December 2008).
By considering these two cases, please answer following questions briefly
- Individually identify the most important facts surrounding the case.
- Individually identify the key issue or issues.
- Specify alternative courses of action.
- Evaluate each course of action.
- Recommend the best course of action.