General protections and harmful (adverse) action

General protections laws protect employees and others from having harmful (adverse) action taken against them for a prohibited reason. 

The general protections laws are very different to unfair dismissal. A general protections application is not an alternative for employees who can't apply for unfair dismissal.

  1. What is a general protections application?

    Watch our short video to find out what a general protections application is, who can apply, and the process.

What is a prohibited reason?

If a reason is prohibited, that means it is against the law to dismiss or harm someone in their employment for that reason.

Prohibited reasons include:

  • workplace discrimination – for example, because of race, sex, age, disability, family or carer's responsibilities, pregnancy, religion or other protected attributes (read about protected attributes on the Fair Work Ombudsman's website)
  • having or using a workplace right – for example, taking leave, questioning pay or making a complaint about their employment
  • being away from work because of sickness or injury
  • engaging in industrial activities – for example, joining a union, participating in lawful industrial action or being a workplace delegate
  • sham arrangements – for example, firing a permanent employee to re-hire them as a casual or a contractor.

The full list of prohibited reasons is in sections 340 to 358  of the Fair Work Act 2009.

What is adverse action?

Adverse action is a harmful action someone takes or threatens to take.

Adverse action can include:

  • being fired (dismissed)
  • being demoted
  • being overlooked for promotion
  • being treated differently from others in the workplace
  • not being hired
  • having your job changed (for example by cutting shifts or hours), or
  • being threatened with any of the above.

The full list of adverse actions is in section 342 of the Fair Work Act 2009.

To be adverse action under general protections laws, the action must have been taken because of a prohibited reason.

What is not adverse action?

Actions taken for a legitimate reason are not adverse action. For example:

  • offering a lower salary to a job applicant because they have less experience
  • deciding not to hire a potential employee because they do not have a driver’s licence and the job requires them to drive
  • making a role redundant when it is genuinely no longer required
  • standing down an employee in circumstances where stand down is allowed under the law or the employment contract, or
  • reasonable management action to address performance concerns, for example, giving a worker feedback or putting them on a performance improvement plan.

Who is protected from adverse action?

  • Employees
  • Prospective employees
  • Independent contractors
  • Employers 

What can I do if I experience adverse action?

If you have experienced adverse action because of a prohibited reason, you may be able to make a general protections application to us.

There are 2 types of general protections applications. The type of application depends on whether or not you have been dismissed.

Note: A general protections application is very different to an unfair dismissal application. If you believe your dismissal was harsh, unjust or unreasonable please instead visit our unfair dismissal page.

IMPORTANT: Our role in general protections cases is limited to dispute resolution.

We can help you talk to the other side to see if you can agree on a way to resolve your case. We do not investigate your case or decide who is right or wrong.

If your case is not resolved, the next step is to take your case to a federal court so they can decide whether or not the law has been broken.

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