The payout also prevents Ms Kay from proceeding with another sexual harassment complaint in the Equal Opportunity Commission, in which she alleged that a macho culture of sexual jokes and innuendo pervaded her place of work - the opposition rooms at State Parliament. She claimed that she was dismissed from her position to make way for male appointments in a male-dominated culture. ALP members to bear the cost of the action instead of using taxpayers' money, senior party officers believed the use of party funds would avoid any controversy about the use of taxpayers' money for such a case. It happened in opposition and often those things get misinterpreted. Legal sources said yesterday the question of government carrying the cost of issues arising with staff while parties were in opposition was a vexed one.
Most governments take the correct and sensible course of avoiding getting into that debate.
Ms Kay's discrimination allegations do not refer to any physical maltreatment. In her original complaint to the Equal Opportunity Commission, she said sexual jokes and comments were common in the ALP opposition rooms. Ms Kay also claimed State Parliament did not have any equal opportunity guidelines or policies in place. A spokeswoman for Speaker Alex Adrianopoulos said a draft policy had been drawn up, which the presiding officers hoped to implement this month. She said the parliament had a sexual harassment policy and a fairness and equity in employment policy.