Race
Everyone is entitled to equal access to work, and equal conditions at work, regardless of their race, nationality or ethnic background.
It is against the law to:
- refuse to employ, promote or train someone because of their race
- separate employees of a particular race from other staff
- employ workers of a particular race under lesser conditions than other staff
- tolerate racist bullying in the workplace.
Here’s an example:
| Connie is Aboriginal. She applied for an after-school job at a family-run dry-cleaners. She was told that she could have the job as long as she understood that she would only be doing cleaning work out the back and was not to serve customers. The owner explained ‘our customers know our family. No offence, but they might feel uncomfortable with a black person. There’s no need for them to know you’re here.’ This is race discrimination. |
There are some situations where it is OK to treat people differently at work because of their race. This includes having programs to help people of a particular race.
Here’s an example:
| A welfare organisation provided services to help Sudanese migrant families get settled in Australia. The organisation wanted to employ a Sudanese community liaison person. They advertised for someone with a Sudanese background, believing that a Sudanese person was best able to understand the needs of its clients and to gain their confidence. Non-Sudanese applicants were not considered. This is not against the law. |
Last updated on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 13:25.
