Play By The Rules

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Play By The Rules
Promoting fair and safe behaviour in sport
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Workshop objectives This workshop will

• explore how discrimination and harassment can
  happen in sport and identify the relevant laws
  that apply
• identify the relevant policies, complaint
  resolution procedures and practices that should
  be in place to assist sporting organisations,
  clubs and schools to meet their responsibilities
  under these laws
• identify the organisations and resources
  available to assist sporting organisations ensure
  their activities are free of discrimination and
  harassment

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Playing by the rules

• helps sporting bodies meet their responsibilities
  under the law
• helps achieve best practice in performance,
  people management and service provision
• promotes fairness, equality, participation and
  selection on merit
• helps avoid the damage to performance, morale and
  general enjoyment that can be caused by
  discrimination, harassment and unfair treatment

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Equal Opportunity Law

• Equal opportunity law cover everyone involved in
  sport-related activities, including
• competitors and players
• administrators, managers and officials
• coaches
• umpires and referees
• trainers
• volunteers
• Sporting organisations are responsible for
  ensuring that anyone involved in sport-related
  activities is not harassed, vilified or
  discriminated against.

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Play by the Rules

• Harassment
• Discrimination
• Child protection
• Sport rage
• The law and best practice

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Play by the Rules

• On-line training
• Administrators
• Umpires and referees
• Coaches
• Participants and volunteers
• Resources and publications
• Policies and procedures
• Case studies, decisions
• Links, FAQs, WebPoll etc

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DVDs

• Child protection
• Discrimination and harassment
• Complaint handling

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Equal Opportunity Law

• Victoria
• Equal Opportunity Act 1995
• Racial and Religious Tolerance Act 2001
• Commonwealth legislation
• Sex Discrimination Act 1984
• Racial Discrimination Act 1975
• Disability Discrimination Act 1992
• Age Discrimination Act 2004

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Discrimination Checklist

• less favourable treatment
• because of a protected attribute
• in an area of public life

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Discrimination

• Direct discrimination
• occurs if a person treats or proposes to treat a
  person with one of the attributes covered by the
  legislation less favourably than someone without
  that attribute or personal characteristic.

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Discrimination

• Indirect discrimination
• occurs when an unreasonable requirement,
  condition or practice which may appear to be
  neutral in fact has a disproportionately negative
  impact on people with particular attributes.

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Attributes

• Age Breastfeeding
• Gender identity Industrial activity
• Lawful sexual activity Physical features
• Carer status Disability
• Marital status Parental status
• Political belief/activities Pregnancy
• Religious belief/activities Race
• Sex Sexual orientation
• Personal association

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Equal Opportunity Law

• Equal opportunity law in Victoria applies in
  areas of public life, for example
• sport
• clubs and club membership
• goods and services
• employment
• education
• accommodation
• local government

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Discrimination in Sport

• A person must not discriminate against another
  person
• by refusing or failing to select them in a
  sporting team, or
• by excluding the other person from participating
  in a sporting activity
• on the basis of a protected attribute.
• A sporting activity includes coaching, refereeing
  and administration.

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Discrimination in clubs and club membership

• Discrimination by clubs and club members is
  unlawful under Victorian Equal Opportunity law.
• A club is defined as a social, recreational,
  sporting or community service club, or a
  community service organisation, that
• occupies crown land, or
• directly or indirectly receives any financial
  assistance from the state or local government.

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Exceptions

• There are a number of exceptions under the law
  that do allow discrimination in specific
  circumstances for practical and commonsense
  reasons such as to ensure competitive standards
  or to take account of genuine sex, gender or
  age-based differences in strength, stamina and
  physique.

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Exemptions to the EOA

• Upon application VCAT may grant an exemption from
  any of the provisions of the Act to a person or
  class of people or activity or class of activity
  ..where the exemption might promote the
  objectives of the Act or is consistent with the
  spirit of the Act.

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Reasonable alteration/variation

• A club or sporting competition is required to
  make reasonable alteration or variation to enable
  equal participation in the club or sporting
  competition by people with protected attributes.
  eg
• Facilities and equipment which allow access for
  people with disabilities
• Respecting the religious beliefs of participants

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Sexual Harassment is

• an unwelcome sexual advance
• an unwelcome request for sexual favours, or
• any other unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature
• in circumstances in which a reasonable person
  having regard to all the circumstances would have
  anticipated that the other person would be
  offended, humiliated or intimidated.

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Racial and Religious Vilification

• People must not engage in conduct that incites
  hatred, revulsion or serious ridicule of, or
  serious contempt for other peoples racial or
  religious backgrounds.

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Who is responsible if an EO complaint is lodged?

• Individuals
• Their employers
• Anyone else who may have authorised or assisted
  the behaviour.

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Vicarious Liability

• If a person in the course of employment, or while
  acting as an agent, engages in discriminatory
  conduct, sexual harassment or vilification, then
  both the person and their employer are liable and
  a complaint may be lodged against either or both
  of them.

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Reasonable Precautions

• In order to avoid liability, employers must take
  reasonable precautions to prevent employees or
  agents from discriminating against, sexually
  harassing or vilifying others.

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Reasonable Precautions

• Are strategies in place to ensure your sporting
  organisation is safe and fair and therefore free
  of discrimination, harassment and vilification?

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Harassment-free Sport Strategy

• Ethos and culture
• Policies and procedures
• Communication and Education
• Designated roles and responsibilities

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Prohibited to authorise or assist discrimination

• A person must not request, instruct, induce,
  encourage, authorise or assist another person to
  discriminate, sexually harass or vilify.
• To comply with such a request could result in a
  complaint being lodged against both parties.

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For more information

• www.playbytherules.net.au
• www.sport.vic.gov.au
• www.ausport.gov.au
• Equal Opportunity Commission Victoria
• Level 3, 380 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
• Inquiry Line 9281 7100
• Country Callers 1800 134 142
• www.eoc.vic.gov.au
• Authorised by Equal Opportunity Commission
  Victoria, 380 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
• Printed by Equal Opportunity Commission Victoria,
  380 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne