With a horror cold and flu season upon us, and COVID-19 making its rounds again, Australian workplaces have experienced an unparalleled rise in sick leave. Investing in wellbeing-focused initiatives aimed at reducing sickness is one-way employers can lessen the pressure of absenteeism, says a leading business expert.
A commission president has rejected an appeal from Bunnings Group Ltd, upholding the finding that it unreasonably pressured a worker to take a transfer and aggravated her psychological conditions following the death of her mother and cousin.
A WHS specialist sacked while on paid personal leave has had her unfair dismissal case thrown out by the Fair Work Commission, which rejected her claim that WHS laws blocked her from sending documents from her laptop to her employer in the absence of a return-to-work plan.
New research shows that by providing specific mental health services to workers with delayed recovery from COVID-19, recovery time decreases, return-to-work readiness improves, and employers can expect a 45 per cent reduction in time off work.
While open plan offices might enhance employee collaboration and offer lower rental costs, the savings might be completely eroded by higher sickness and absenteeism rates, according to a ground-breaking new analysis by a team of German researchers.
The dismissal of an unvaccinated Northern Territory teacher has been found to be harsh and unfair, with the Fair Work Commission ruling that "no employee should be terminated for following their doctors' advice" to obtain a specialist's opinion on COVID-19 vaccines.
A psychologically injured worker's employer did not take unreasonable administrative action against him by declining to return him to work after an incident, but rather was acting out of concern for the welfare of his supervisor and colleagues, a tribunal has found.
A major employer's conduct towards a health and safety representative after a safety meeting has been slammed by a tribunal, in throwing out the company's reasonable action claim.
