disability discrimination
TRANSCRIPT
What is discrimina;on?
(Discrimina*on and the An* Discrimina*on Board of NSW , An*-‐Discrimina*on Board of NSW Factsheet reprinted 4/01).
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‘Discrimina;on means trea;ng somebody unfairly because they happen to belong to a par;cular group of people.’
The many faces of discrimina;on in strata corpora;ons
By-‐laws with age restric;ons
House rules about breasKeeding at the
pool
Chairman flir;ng with the strata manager
Discussing at a mee;ng the desirability of a
person based on their appearances
Asking a new resident manager about his or her marital status or
sexuality
Enforcing a by-‐law about restric;ng modifica;ons for a wheel chair user
Banning children from playing on common
property
Restric;ng certain food types being cooked in a communal kitchen
Refusing to install a new and easier to use pool area access
device
© Copyright 2011 Teys Lawyers www.teyslawyers.com.au
The 3 necessary elements of discrimina;on
Ground of discrimina;on (race, sex, etc)
Type of discrimina;on (direct or indirect)
Specified area of discrimina;on (e.g. providing
services)
© Copyright 2011 Teys Lawyers www.teyslawyers.com.au
Recognising indirect discrimina;on is a key issue for strata living
• Trea;ng a person less favoruably because of their disability
• Telling someone they can’t use the pool because their appearance will upset others
Direct discrimina;on
• A person is prevented from doing something a person without a disability can do
• A person with a disability can’t open the pool gate without the aid of a proximity device which the OC won’t install
Indirect discrimina;on
© Copyright 2011 Teys Lawyers www.teyslawyers.com.au
A case study in strata discrimina;on
© Copyright 2011 Teys Lawyers www.teyslawyers.com.au
Indirect discrimina;on on the ground of impairment in accommoda;on and the supply of goods and services against a Qld body corporate.
Indirect discrimina;on proved because residents had to use a manual common property access device and the applicant could but could easily have used a proximity device.
Compensa;on of $25,000 awarded.
About the Presenter Michael Teys is the Founder and Principal Lawyer of TEYS Lawyers. He has a Bachelor of Laws and practices exclusively in the area of strata and community title law. He is a Fellow of the Australian College of Community Association Lawyers. He was formerly an Adjunct Lecturer with Charles Sturt University. He has also been the CEO of a publicly listed company and one of Australia’s largest strata management companies managing over $8B of residential and commercial property. Michael appears weekly on SKY News Business Channel's Property Success with Margaret Lomas and is a regular panellist for the property edition of Your Money, Your Call for the same channel. You can read Michael’s blog at www.michaelteys.com and follow him on Twitter at @MichaelTeys.com
Teys Lawyers practice nationally in strata and community title law representing owners corporations, bodies corporate and apartment owners. The firm’s practice groups include building defects, strata community disputes, strata title property law, by-law / rules and levy / fee collection.
TEYS Lawyers provide an entirely cloud based working platform for their team. The firm provides flexible working arrangements and has remote working locations in Queensland and Victoria.