How To Conduct An Effective Investigation

KEY TAKEAWAYS: Advice from an experienced legal and HR senior leader who recently transitioned to specialise in workplace investigations: pursue workplace investigations if you enjoy working with all kinds of people, love digging into the minutiae and have a particular penchant for procedural fairness lawyers and ER practitioners have transferrable skills, in areas such as […]

Katrina Saunders v Bengalla Mining Company Pty Ltd – [2025] FWC 658 KEY TAKEAWAYS: Video evidence proved crucial in a recent Fair Work Commission unfair dismissal case. The case offers the following key learnings for investigators: objective evidence like video footage can be decisive when employees deny allegations of wrongdoing, particularly if it is analysed

KEY TAKEAWAYS: 1. Quality surveillance evidence can be valuable in workplace investigations, providing: independent and direct records of incidents precise timing and identification of witnesses high reliability compared to witness recollection 2. Surveillance evidence can also have important limitations, including: storage and retention constraints legal compliance requirements quality and visibility issues resource costs for extensive

Y v Hai Di Lao Melbourne Proprietary Limited [2024] FWC 3313 KEY TAKEAWAYS: A recent unfair dismissal case in the Fair Work Commission (FWC): is a reminder for investigators that not every instance of inappropriate conduct in the workplace will rise to the level of misconduct reinforces the importance of having clear complaints handling and

KEY TAKEAWAYS: Five key workplace investigation trends dominated 2024 and developments to watch in 2025: Workplace investigations and internal investigation teams on the rise | 2025 outlook: demand will continue Increased involvement of WHS teams in sexual harassment and bullying investigations | 2025 outlook: cooperation between HR and WHS will be critical, particularly as workplace

KEY TAKEAWAYS: workplace investigators are often exposed to confronting content and distressed people in the course of their work, putting them at risk of vicarious trauma and burn out we continue to see an increased demand for workplace investigations and skilled and resilient investigators while organisations are focused on resourcing and supporting the investigations function,

E v Vision Australia Ltd [2024] HCA 50 KEY TAKEAWAYS: The landmark High Court case on contractual damages centred on an employee suing his employer for damages for a psychiatric injury he sustained after his employment was unfairly terminated for misconduct. The Court relevantly held that: employees can potentially recover significant damages for psychiatric injuries

KEY TAKEAWAYS: the types of workplace surveillance – such as wearable cameras, fingerprint or eye scanners, employee activity or logging monitoring – has exploded since COVID and with rapid advances in technology employers have a responsibility to provide a safe workplace and safeguard their employees’ right to privacy it is helpful for workplace investigators to:

KEY TAKEAWAYS: a poorly handled workplace investigation can pose a psychosocial risk to participants and investigators psychological harm to participants can be mitigated by five key workplace investigation practices: 1. ensuring procedural fairness 2. taking a trauma-informed and person-centred approach 3. providing support to all participants 4. conducting investigations in a timely manner 5. closing

KEY TAKEAWAYS: many business leaders are either unaware of the psychosocial risks associated with workplace investigations or unsure how to manage them, according to a global survey two key psychosocial risks present in a workplace investigation are: the content of the complaint; and the investigation process key workplace investigation controls identified in the Model Code