Australia news LIVE: Education ministers meet to discuss teacher shortages; John Barilaro returns to face inquiry over New York trade role
Key posts
- Melbourne University pursued over alleged coercion of casual academics
- Bullying and sex file rocks NSW MPs
- This morning’s key headlines at a glance
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Melbourne University pursued over alleged coercion of casual academics
The Fair Work Ombudsman has launched a landmark legal case against Victoria’s wealthiest university over what it says was coercion and punishment of two casual academics who sought to be paid for the extra hours they had worked.
In the first case of its kind after years of systemic underpayment of casual university staff, the ombudsman alleges in court documents that Melbourne University, one of Australia’s richest universities, “threatened not to re-employ the two academics with the intent to coerce them to not exercise their workplace right to claim payment for the extra work”.
The Fair Work Ombudsman has launched legal action against Melbourne University.Credit:Wayne Taylor
The university agreed in 2020 to pay back millions in wages owed to workers. Last year, vice chancellor Duncan Maskell apologised over the running issue and pledged to fix it.
The university posted a net surplus of $584 million for 2021.
More on this issue here.
Bullying and sex file rocks NSW MPs
A landmark investigation into the workplace culture at NSW parliament has uncovered a toxic and “devastating” combination of bullying, sexual harassment and assault, with MPs identified as the main perpetrators of some of the worst behaviour.
The review, conducted by former sex discrimination commissioner Elizabeth Broderick, will be published later today. However, MPs were provided briefings on Thursday which revealed one in three respondents had experienced bullying or sexual harassment in the past five years.
A landmark report into the toxic workplace culture at NSW parliament is expected to reveal widespread accounts of sexual harassment and a culture of bullying.Credit:Louise Kennerley
One briefing, given to several MPs and seen by this masthead, said 52 per cent of bullying incidents were perpetrated by members of parliament.
Read the full story here.
This morning’s key headlines at a glance
Good morning and thanks for your company.
It’s Friday, August 12. I’m Broede Carmody and I’ll be anchoring our live coverage for the first half of the day.
Here’s what you need to know before we get started.
- Australia’s education ministers will meet this morning to discuss the nation’s teacher shortages. Some states, such as NSW and Victoria, have already flagged pay rises for high-performing teachers.
- Former NSW premier John Barilaro will once again front a parliamentary hearing today over his controversial appointment to a plum New York trade role.
- A landmark investigation into the workplace culture at NSW parliament will be released today. As Tom Rabe and Lucy Cormack write, the report found one in three respondents had experienced bullying or sexual harassment in the past five years.
- In Victoria, the state’s wealthiest university is facing a landmark legal case brought forward by the Fair Work Ombudsman. The employer watchdog says two casual academics were coerced and punished for seeking to be paid the extra hours that they worked.
- The Reserve Bank should have started tightening monetary policy last year rather than trying to catch up with large interest rate rises in recent months, a leading economist says.
- Labor has vowed to improve compensation claim processes for ADF personnel and veterans. An interim report from the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicides was released yesterday. Katina Curtis has more.
- And US Attorney-General Merrick Garland has broken his silence following the raid on Donald Trump’s home in Florida. Farrah Tomazin reports that the top prosecutor wants to unseal the search warrant due to “substantial public interest”.
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