Draft Legislation Released for Federal Anti-Discrimination Laws

After much discussion for the last two years, the Attorney General has released draft legislation consolidating the five separate Federal anti-discrimination laws into a single Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Bill 2012.

Although this bill is yet to be introduced into Parliament, consultation closed earlier this year and the draft bill will become a principal piece of legislation in the anti-discrimination area, covering issues such as:

• Differing levels of protections to the highest current standard, to resolve gaps and inconsistencies without diminishing protections.

• Clearer and more efficient laws provide greater flexibility in their operation, with no substantial change in practical outcome.

• Enhancing protections where the benefits outweigh any regulatory impact.

• Voluntary measures that business can take to assist their understanding of obligations and reduce occurrences of discrimination.

• A streamlined complaints process, to make it more efficient to resolve disputes that do arise.

This bill will further promote a unified response to discrimination across Australia.

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