Australia’s Solution to Disability Discrimination Enforcement

Cornell HR Review, Forthcoming

7 Pages Posted: 7 Feb 2012

See all articles by Paul Harpur

Paul Harpur

University of Queensland - T.C. Beirne School of Law

Ben French

Griffith University - Griffith Business School

Richard A. Bales

Ohio Northern University - Pettit College of Law

Date Written: February 6, 2012

Abstract

Until recently, Australian disability discrimination law was similar to that of the United States and much of the rest of the world: it defined disability relatively narrowly, its penalties for noncompliance were relatively paltry, and it depended on enforcement of lawsuits brought by aggrieved private citizens. In 2009, however, Australia adopted the Fair Work Act 2009 (FW Act). The FW Act defined disability much more broadly, increased substantially the penalties for noncompliance, and created a state institution to enforce disability rights. This article analyses the FW Act, compares it to the workplace disability law in the United States, and argues that the FW Act is a transformational development in the struggle to achieve workplace equality and an approach that should attract significant international interest.

Suggested Citation

Harpur, Paul David and French, Ben and Bales, Richard A., Australia’s Solution to Disability Discrimination Enforcement (February 6, 2012). Cornell HR Review, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2000189

Paul David Harpur

University of Queensland - T.C. Beirne School of Law ( email )

Brisbane, Queensland 4072
Australia

Ben French

Griffith University - Griffith Business School ( email )

Brisbane, Queensland 4111
Australia

Richard A. Bales (Contact Author)

Ohio Northern University - Pettit College of Law ( email )

525 South Main Street
Ada, OH 45810
United States
419-772-2205 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://law.onu.edu/node/3073

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