Equity & Diversity Toolkit

Extracts

Certified Agreement

13. Diversity in the Workplace

13.1 The Agency recognises and encourages the contribution that people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and skills can make to the workplace. The Agency aims to ensure that this diversity is used in appropriate employee contribution to effective decision making and delivery of client service.

13.2 The Agency will work with employees to prevent and eliminate discrimination on the basis of race, colour, sex, sexual preference, age, physical or mental disability, marital status, family responsiblities, pregnancy, religious belief, political opinion, national extraction or social origin. Harassment of any kind will not be tolerated.

13.3 Where a discrimination or harassment issue arises, the Agency will take quick action to address the issue.

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Public Sector Management Act 1994

6. Values and principles

Government agencies shall have an objective of implementing the following values and principles:

(a) service to the public;

(b) responsiveness to -

(i) the requirements of the government; and

(ii) the needs of the public;

(d) fairness and integrity;

(e) efficiency and effectiveness.

7. General principles of public administration

The public sector shall be administered with an objective of giving effect to the following principles:

(a) the public sector shall be administered to provide quality services to the public;

(b) decisions shall be as fair as possible;

(d) the public sector shall be structured and organised to facilitate the timely and effective performance of its functions;

(e) there shall be clear and explicit delineation of the responsibilities and accountabilities of public employees, administrative units and Territory instrumentalities;

(f) the public sector shall be managed in accordance with principles of access and equity by giving all members of the public the opportunity to have a fair share of the resources which the Territory manages on their behalf and an opportunity to gain access to the resources to which they are entitled;

(g) the public sector shall be administered to minimise the possibility of unlawful discrimination.

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8. General principles of management in employment matters

In employment matters, government agencies shall be administered with an objective of giving effect to the following principles:

(a) selection processes shall be directed towards and based on a proper assessment of merit;

(b) all officers shall be afforded equal opportunities to secure promotion and advancement in their employment on the basis of relative merit;

(d) public employees shall be provided with safe and healthy working conditions;

(e) public employees shall be afforded opportunities for appropriate participation in the decision-making processes relating to the administration of the government agencies in which they work.

9. General obligations of public employees

A public employee shall, in performing his or her duties:

(a) exercise reasonable care and skill;

(b) act impartially;

(d) treat members of the public and other public employees with courtesy and sensitivity to their rights, duties and aspirations;

(e) in dealing with members of the public, make all reasonable efforts to assist them to understand their entitlements under the laws of the Territory and to understand any requirements which they are obliged to satisfy under those laws;

(f) not harass a member of the public or another public employee, whether sexually or otherwise;

(g) not unlawfully coerce a member of the public or another public employee;

(h) comply with this Act, the management standards and all other Territory laws;

(i) comply with any lawful and reasonable direction given by a person having authority to give the direction;

(j) if the employee has an interest, pecuniary or otherwise, that could conflict, or appear to conflict, with the proper performance of his or her duties—

(i) disclose the interest to his or her supervisor; and

(ii) take reasonable action to avoid the conflict;

as soon as possible after the relevant facts come to the employee’s notice;

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39 Definitions for [the purposes of the above] div 3.7

In this division:

access and equity principle means the principle mentioned in section 7 (f).

access and equity program means a program to promote the access and equity principle.

designated group means any of the following classes of persons:

(a) Aboriginal persons, being persons who are descended from, identify as, and are accepted by an Aboriginal community as, Aboriginal persons;

(b) Torres Strait Islanders, being persons who are descendants of an indigenous inhabitant of the Torres Strait Islands;

(c) persons who have migrated to Australia and whose first language is a language other than English, and the children of such persons;

(d) persons who have an impairment within the meaning of the Discrimination Act 1991.

discrimination means discrimination that is unlawful under the Discrimination Act 1991.

employment matters means—

(a) the selection of persons for appointment as officers, or for employment as employees, in the service; and

(b) the promotion and transfer of officers to offices in the service; and

(d) terms or conditions of service of officers and employees in the service; and

(e) any other matter related to the employment of officers and employees in the service.

equal employment opportunity program means a program designed to ensure that—

(a) appropriate action is taken to eliminate discrimination against women and persons in designated groups in relation to employment matters in the service; and

(b) measures are taken to enable women and persons in designated groups to—

(i) compete for promotion and transfer in the service; and

(ii) pursue careers in the service;

as effectively as other persons.

industrial democracy program means a program designed to achieve appropriate participation by officers in the decision-making processes relating to the administration of the government agencies in which they work.

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40 Equal employment opportunity programs

(1) As soon as practicable, and in any event, within 12 months after the commencement of this section, the commissioner shall—

(a) after giving relevant staff organisations and any other persons the commissioner considers appropriate an opportunity to put their views, cause to be developed an equal employment opportunity program for the service; and

(b) cause to be prepared a written statement setting out the program so developed; and

(2) The management standards may provide for an equal opportunity program for the service to implement a statement provided to the Chief Minister under subsection (1).

41 Access and equity programs

(1) As soon as practicable, and in any event, within 12 months after the commencement of this section, the commissioner shall—

(a) after giving relevant staff organisations and any other persons the commissioner considers appropriate an opportunity to put their views, cause to be developed an access and equity program for the service; and

(b) cause to be prepared a written statement setting out the program so developed; and

(2) The management standards may provide for an access and equity program for the service to implement a statement provided to the Chief Minister under subsection (1).

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42 Industrial democracy programs

(1) As soon as practicable, and in any event, within 12 months after the commencement of this section, the commissioner shall—

(a) in consultation with the joint council, relevant staff organisations and with any other persons the commissioner considers appropriate, cause to be developed an industrial democracy program for the service; and

(b) cause to be prepared a written statement setting out the program so developed; and

(2) The management standards may provide for an industrial democracy program for the service to implement a statement provided to the Chief Minister under subsection (1).

43 Development of programs in autonomous instrumentalities

In the application of sections 40 (1), 41 (1) and 42 (1) to an officer, or employee, of an autonomous instrumentality—

(a) the reference to the commissioner shall be taken to be a reference to the chief executive officer of the instrumentality; and

(b) the reference to the service shall be taken to be a reference to the staff of the instrumentality; and

(c) the reference to the Chief Minister shall be taken to be a reference to the Chief Minister and the relevant Minister.

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Public Sector Management Standards

Standard 1 - Part 3 - Equity and Diversity

1. Application

This Part applies to the Commissioner for Public Administration and Chief Executives.

2. Commissioner for Public Administration

Under Part, 1 Division 7, Section 40 of the Public Sector Management Act 1994, the Commissioner for Public Administration is to develop and issue an equal employment opportunity for the Service. The Equity and Diversity Framework for the ACT Public Service is intended as that program.

The Commissioner will update the Framework as appropriate by providing a statement to that effect to the Chief Minister.

3. Chief Executive responsibilities

A Chief Executive must take all reasonable steps to prepare and implement Equity and Diversity Plans for their agency. The Chief Executive must prepare an Equity and Diversity Plan prior to the expiration of the previous plan or within three months of the formation of a new agency. They must monitor, report and review Equity and Diversity Plans.

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Human Rights Act 2004

For a general overview of the Human Rights Act please see Legal framework

Some of the specific areas of the Human Rights Act 2004 which are relevant to Equity and Diversity are as follows:

Freedom of thought conscience, religion and belief – “The right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief is absolute. The government cannot interfere with what a person may believe or think or require someone to follow a particular religious or other belief or practice or to promote or support it.”
Peaceful assembly and freedom of association – “The right to peaceful assembly ensures that people can join together in private or public for any peaceful or lawful activity…”
Rights of ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities – “The UN Human Rights Committee has identified this right as being distinct from, and in addition to, other human rights. Section 27 of the HRA is aimed at eth long-term survival of the group and recognises the diversity of humanity. It is the right of those belonging to a minority group who share a common culture, religion or language to enjoy their own culture, to practice their religion, and speak their language. This right applies to everyone including those who are not citizens or permanent residents and includes an obligation to ensure effective participation of members of minority communities in decisions that affect them. However, such activities are subject to the law of the Territory and may be subject to reasonable limitations that meet the test of section 28.”

Please note that the quotes above are from ‘Human Rights Act 2004, A Plain English Guide’.

Occupational Health and Safety

SAFETY, REHABILITATION AND COMPENSATION ACT 1988
- SECT 6
Injury arising out of or in the course of employment

(1)
     Without limiting the circumstances in which an injury to an employee may      be treated as having arisen out of, or in the course of, his or her      employment, an injury shall, for the purposes of this Act, be treated as      having so arisen if it was sustained:
(a)
     as a result of an act of violence that would not have occurred but for the      employee's employment or the performance by the employee of the duties or      functions of his or her employment; or
(b)
     while the employee:
(i)
     was at his or her place of work, for the purposes of that employment, or was      temporarily absent from that place during an ordinary recess in that      employment;
(ii)
     was travelling between his or her place of residence and place of work, other      than during an ordinary recess in that employment;
(iii)
     was travelling between the place where he or she normally resides and      another place, being a place where he or she resides temporarily, as a matter      of necessity or convenience, for the purposes of his or her employment;
(iv)
     was travelling between one of his      or her places of work and another of      his or her places of work;
(v)
      was travelling between his or her place of work or place of residence and a      place of education for the purpose of attending that place in accordance with:

impairment means the loss, the loss of the use, or the damage or malfunction, of any part of the body or of any bodily system or function or part of such system or function.
injury means:

(a)
     a disease suffered by an employee; or
(b)
     an injury (other than a disease) suffered by an employee, being a physical or      mental injury arising out of, or in the course of, the employee's employment;      or
(c)
     an aggravation of a physical or mental injury (other than a disease) suffered      by an employee (whether or not that injury arose out of, or in the course of,      the employee's employment), being an aggravation that arose out of, or in the      course of, that employment;
     but does not include any such disease, injury or aggravation suffered by an      employee as a result of reasonable disciplinary action taken against the      employee or failure by the employee to obtain a promotion, transfer or benefit      in connection with his or her employment.

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