New South Wales Consolidated Acts

INDEPENDENT COMMISSION AGAINST CORRUPTION ACT 1988 - SECT 79F

79F Reasonable management action not prevented

(1) This Part does not prevent reasonable management action from being taken in relation to a person.

(2) Without limiting subsection (1)--

(a) a person who takes reasonable management action in relation to another person does not commit a detrimental action offence or incur other liability under this Part, and

(b) action taken in relation to a person may be reasonable management action--

(i) if the person is alleged to have committed a detrimental action offence--whether or not the person has been charged with the offence, and

(ii) if the person has been convicted of a detrimental action offence--on the ground of the conduct to which the conviction relates and without further investigation of whether the conduct occurred, and

(iii) whether or not the action is taken by a manager of the person.

(3) In this Part,
"reasonable management action" taken in relation to a person includes--

(a) a reasonable appraisal of the person's work performance, and

(b) a reasonable counselling action, whether formal or informal, taken in relation to the person's employment, and

(c) a reasonable suspension of the person from the person's workplace, and

(d) a reasonable decision to investigate serious wrongdoing or other misconduct alleged or suspected to have been committed by the person, and

(e) a reasonable disciplinary action, whether formal or informal, taken in relation to the person's employment, and

(f) a reasonable action to transfer, deploy or redeploy the person, and

(g) a reasonable action to terminate the person's employment by redundancy or retrenchment, and

(h) a reasonable action to suspend, terminate or review a contract under which the person provides services, and

(i) a reasonable action resulting in or relating to the person's failure to obtain a promotion, reclassification, transfer or benefit, or to keep a benefit, in relation to the person's employment, and

(j) a reasonable action relating to an action mentioned in paragraphs (a)-(i).

Example : The actions specified in the Government Sector Employment Act 2013 , section 69(4) and the Police Act 1990 , section 173(2) are examples of disciplinary action mentioned in paragraph (e).

(4) However, action taken in relation to a person is not reasonable management action if--

(a) the way of taking the action is not reasonable, or

(b) the action is taken corruptly or fraudulently, or

(c) the action is taken to conceal, or avoid the consequences of, serious wrongdoing, or

(d) each of the following applies to the action--

(i) the person taking the action, when taking the action, has a suspicion, belief or awareness, whether correct or mistaken, that the person in relation to whom the action is taken or a third person is a protected person,

(ii) the suspicion, belief or awareness is a contributing factor to the taking of the action,

(iii) the action is not taken for the purpose of reducing the risk of detrimental action being taken against the person in relation to whom the action is taken or a third person.