LawSense School Law NSW 2025 – Staff Issues Day

In-Person and Online Day of Learning, Including Practical Insight & Experiences from NSW School Leaders. Part of LawSense School Law NSW 2025 & Separately Bookable

Program

8.45      LawSense Welcome

8.50      Chairperson’s Remarks

Dr Gareth Leechman, College Headmaster, Arndell Anglican College; National Chair, AHISA

9.00      Psychosocial Hazards: Learnings from Recent Cases, What Schools Have Implemented and Dealing with Claims and Staff “Weaponising” Psychosocial Safety

Outlining Recent Laws Regarding Psychosocial Hazards and Potential Claims

• Outlining the recent changes to WHS legislation affecting schools including:
  • examining definitions of psychosocial hazards and how this can include bullying, sexual harassment, and other behaviours
  • outlining how it applies to staff, students and others interacting with the school
  • understanding obligations to identify reasonably foreseeable psychosocial hazards that could give rise to health and safety risks
• Understanding what claims staff, students or parents can make against you using the new laws

Learnings from Recent Cases and Attitude/Action of Regulators to Date

• Examining the response of WHS regulators in investigating and enforcing requirements regarding psycho-social hazards. What have been “triggers” of regulator action?
• Examining learnings from investigations and cases applying the new law

Staff Claims, Including Staff “Weaponising” New Laws

• Understanding how staff can “weaponise” recent law changes in response to performance management or disciplinary action
• Examining what changes to performance management and disciplinary processes you should consider to optimise your legal position
• Dealing with staff claims of “unsafe” interactions or work environments – from low level claims to alleged serious failures

Case Studies – What Have Other Schools Implemented/Experienced

• Exploring what schools have implemented to date, including:
  • consultation – surveys, focus groups and other tools including committee meetings, team meeting, networks and individual discussions
  • exit interviews for identifying hazards
  • other data sources/audit tools and records
  • control measures to eliminate (or minimise) psychosocial risks
  • changes to job design, including duties, workload, team structures, and resource allocations
  • changes in approaches to performance management and staff disciplinary matters
  • responding to staff “weaponisation” of new psychosocial hazards laws and regulation

Ben Tallboys, Principal, Russell Kennedy Lawyers; Legal Counsel, Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA)

Dr Gareth Leechman, College Headmaster, Arndell Anglican College; National Chair, AHISA

10.30    Morning Tea

11.00    Ill and Injured Staff: Determining Work Versus Non-Work Injury and Navigating Medical Assessments and Return to Work

Navigating the Grey Areas of Determining Work Versus Non-Work Injury

• Outlining the current legal framework applying to work versus non-work injuries
• Examining the grey areas of what are work versus non-work injuries – exploring:
  • circumstances where there is a dispute about whether an injury is work or non-work related
  • scenarios where an original work injury changes or “expands” to arguably include non-work-related conditions
• Understanding what information, you are able to request to clarify grey areas or disputes

Acceptable Medical Evidence and Effective IME’s

• Dealing with medical certificates and reports – understanding when you can challenge or clarify medical evidence
• Optimising questions to ask the staff member’s medical practitioner to verify or clarify the condition
• Obtaining independent medical reports or evidence – when this can be done and how to brief the expert

Challenges With Return to Work and Reasonable Adjustments

• Understanding obligations regarding reasonable adjustments and return to work with work and non-work related injuries
• Understanding rights and obligations with chronic or age-related illness or injury
• Exploring the limits – at what point does an adjustment become unreasonable under the current law
• Learning from case studies and exploring adjustments, including rights and obligations regarding:
  • absence/time off, including when you consider taking action where there has been extended absence after a non-work injury
  • alternative duties or requests for particular classes
  • changes in timetable or workload
  • flexible work/ work from home arrangements
  • changes to the physical environment, furniture or devices where physical injury or disability is involved

Jacquie Seemann, Partner, Thomson Geer Lawyers

12.25    Chairperson’s Remarks

12.30    Lunch

1.15      Chairperson’s Remarks

Alison Binet, Deputy Head People & Culture, Barker College

Belinda Reid, Head of Human Resources, Trinity Grammar School, Sydney

1.20      Specialist Staff, Including in Music, Peripatetic Staff, Extra-Curricular and Sport: Effectively Navigating Impacts of Recent Law Changes Regarding Fixed Term Contracts, Independent Contractor Laws and Industrial Agreements

• Exploring how specialist staff are used in schools and work arrangements, including music teachers, sports coaches and other work
• Outlining key laws applying including:
  • recent changes to the law affecting fixed term contracts
  • laws regarding independent contractors
  • applicable industrial agreements
• Examining the challenges and impacts of the current legal framework on use and flexibility with specialist staff
• Exploring options and work-arounds to optimise arrangements with specialist staff in light of changed laws

Jennifer Patterson, Partner, MinterEllison

2.20      Implementing and Managing Flexible Work Arrangements, Including Job Sharing and The Right to Disconnect

• Outlining the obligations of schools regarding flexible work arrangements, including:
  • obligations to consult and attempt agreement with the staff member
  • refusing on reasonable business grounds
  • obligations to respond in writing providing reasons and other changes the school is willing to make
  • exploring impacts on requests for job-sharing or other arrangements in schools
• Exploring the interaction with the right to disconnect in practice
• Reviewing the implications for schools of recent cases applying the current laws, including circumstances in which the Fair Work Commission has considered it reasonable to have flexible work arrangements and where it hasn’t??
• Exploring what types of arrangements are considered reasonable in schools

Case Studies and Panel: What Have Other Schools Implemented and Learnings

Amy Walsh, Special Counsel, MinterEllison

3.20      Afternoon tea

3.40      Drafting Effective and Defensible Allegations and Communications to a Staff Member Where There Is Alleged Misconduct or Disciplinary Action

Drafting Allegations

• Understanding school procedural fairness obligations and how they impact drafting allegations
• Drafting/framing allegations against staff – properly drafting allegations regarding the staff member being investigated or disciplined:
  • what extent and level of evidence should be obtained and considered and what should the allegations include
  • ensuring that the allegations you communicate to the staff member meet your procedural fairness obligations
  • learning from examples

Letters and Communications

• Exploring key elements of best practice communications with the staff member during performance management, disciplinary action or claims
• Learning from case studies – good letter versus not so good letters and communications

Note-Taking and Record Keeping

• Exploring optimum note-taking and record keeping to protect your legal position with staff issues

Christa Lenard, Partner, Kingston Reid

4.40      Chairperson’s Remarks

4.45      Event Close

Presenters / panelists include:

	Dr Gareth Leechman has been Headmaster of Arndell Anglican College since 2010, prior to which he was Headmaster of Clarence Valley Anglican School and before that was Head of History and Head of House at Shore School. He is currently the National Chair of AHISA and has served as the immediate Deputy Chair of the State Branch of AHISA (NSW/ACT) and as Chair of HICES (Heads of Independent Co-Educational Schools NSW).
	Ben Tallboys provides sector-specific, practical legal solutions to schools across Australia. Ben is a passionate and effective advocate for principals dealing with complex matters relating to parents, staff and students, as well as their own employment.
	Jacquie Seeman acts for education sector clients across the education lifecycle, including preschools, schools and universities. She advises these clients on employment-related issues and also on the broadest range of education law issues, including child protection and health and disability issues.
	Alison Binet is the Deputy Head People & Culture at Barker College, an Anglican Independent School in Sydney. Barker College’s main campus is in Hornsby, with three indigenous campuses in NSW and NT. Alison has a strong background in the Education Sector, having been with Barker College since 2018 and previously with Catholic Schools, Diocese of Broken Bay for 14 years.
	Belinda Reid is the Head of Human Resources at Trinity Grammar School, Sydney. Belinda is passionate about staff wellbeing, performance management, reducing psychosocial injury and improving wellbeing through adapting workplace policies and practices to meet the emerging needs of staff.
	Jen Patterson has extensive experience as an industrial relations, employment and WHS law advisor. Jen has particular expertise advising schools. She has acted for the Association of Independent Schools in NSW for more than 20 years and sits on their Employee Relations Committee. Jen was the lead adviser to the AISNSW on industrial strategy for its member schools following the two most recent legislative reforms.
	Amy Walsh advises Independent Schools and the NSW Department of Education on matters including enrolment disputes, student issues and wellbeing and safety matters, employment matters, parent disputes, child protection investigations, funding issues and governance.
	Christa Lenard is a workplace relations and employment lawyer with extensive experience in advising public sector departments and agencies at both Commonwealth and state level, as well as large and medium private sector companies.

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