Now I've heard everything

Nice to see that the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal will step on Sexists

Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

Im getting a little sick and tired of all the sex discrimination commissions becoming "man bashing" centers. It was ironic that the same year fernwood (a female only gym) started a feminist group took out a challange against the Male only Melbourne club. NOT a strip club, those are actually open to anyone no matter what people might suggest, that was an old school type "boys club", ie cigars (probably banned now

Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

) and brandy.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide all adverts.

I don't really get why they wouldn't be granted the exemption. Who really cares if there is a women's only travel group? It's not like there aren't plenty of other companies men can use. Same for the Male only Melbourne club. Why does the feminist group care so much? Ok maybe I can understand if it is frequented by powerful corporate types who make half their business decisions while smoking cigars, and as such excludes female executives from important business as a side effect, or something like that, but the travel company seems pretty different to that.
In other words if it is only recreation related then who cares?

 

Log in or Sign up to hide all adverts.

what does she need to apply for? Why can't she just do it?

 

Log in or Sign up to hide all adverts.

Well she could get sued by some random guy wanting to go on a trip with a bunch of women, even if she advertises it as women only, if she then refuses him service based on gender.

 

Asguard, would you do that?

 

because the law is quite clear, you may not exclude any group based on race religion, gender, sexuality, age ect (i think theres more than that but i simply cant rember). There are very few exceptions built into the legislation itself, for instance sporting clubs may only except one gender after 15 years (that age might be slightly wrong but i dont have the legislation in front of me and its close enough for you to get the point), religious schools are alowed to preference a certain religion over the general student population ect but there are not many of them and nither should there be. All other organisations must applie to the various human rights commissions

Even the defense force requires an exception from the equal opitunity commissioner in order to have male only jobs. this law aplies to anyone, clubs, organisations, buinesses, goverment.

Hell i do rember a case of a male student who took his school to the sex discrimination commission because girls were alowed long hair but boys wernt and he won. The reason women are alowed to wear pants at work rather than the boss deciding they must wear skirts is because of this legislation (put those 2 things together and you get a very interesting senario if anyone ever wanted to take it up

Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

)

But there has been a perseption that the sex discrimination commisioner was more likly to grant a request comming from a women\womens group than a man\mens group. For instance the Scouts were ruled that they MUST accept girls but there has been no ruling against the Guides

 

and what would you do? Would you demand your right to go on an all female vacation?

 

She could just form it as a private club. I don't know the exact laws in Oz, but usually a private club can have whatever discriminatory rules it wants.

~String

 

string: private as in what?

I mean like a group of families who decide they want to do something? no there are no laws about that

Or

a formal organisation? Any formal organisation DOES come under the powers of the anti discrimination acts and anytime you accept money for something as a business you DEFINTILY do. In Australia we will NEVER have a situation like what used to happen in the US with signs up on the doors saying "whites only". Wether its race, skin colour, gender, sexuality, religion, disability ect discrimination is ILLEGAL

Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

 

As I said, I don't know the laws in Oz. And with a more malleable constitutional framework, Canberra has an easier time orchestrating such a law. Here, such a prohibition would not withstand constitutional muster (and this concerns private clubs only; institutions which are open to the public and/or are publicly traded are applicable under anti-discrimination laws). If it's a private club, on private property, not accepting any government money (like August Country Club, which does not permit women) it can ban/admit whomever it wants.

~String

 

why do you think there is a public movement AGAINST a "bill of rights" in the consitution rather than in legislation?

We dont WANT to see clubs or even shops with signs in the window forbidding entry to whatever the next "blacks" are (at the moment if the signs still exist its probably muslims or "towl heads")

 

Pretty sure women can't make it to the 33rd degree in the masons or whatever those silver-spooned frat boys all join up with after U.S college. I don't think women can be members at all.

 

Sounds like a pretty good idea. :shrug: I would have just done it anyway until someone actually complained. If it ain't broke don't fix it. She may have gotten no complaints.

 

So are all public bathrooms unisex or do they fall under an exception?

 

dont actually need complaints, the human rights commissioner has the power to investigate any breach of the anti discrimination act and if they dont seek permission BEFORE they do it and then get charged then the law will come down quite heavly on them. To simply ignore the law till you get caught is a VERY bad president, you know "oh i wont worry about theft laws till someone complains to the police"? ect

Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

 

There's no doubt--and I've said this before--there are benefits to having the Westminster system as there are unfortunate members of society who can effectively hide behind a fixed bill of rights. It happens all the time here (and in other constitutionally framed republics). There are--presumably--various benefits that you are forgetting, though.

No. Those signs don't exist in any meaningful numbers here. For starters, in every state that I know of, any business which is open to the public (as I stated, which you conveniently left out; makes me wonder about your reading ability) cannot ban segments of the public. Example: A mom-and-pop owned diner in Alabama cannot ban blacks from entering and getting served. Besides breaking that law, there are other, secondary and tertiary, laws that would come into effect (zoning, taxing, subsidizing, public utilities, etc). Plus, it's just bad business to have the ACLU show up at your shop and draw negative attention. For all the exaggerated racism from the south, the dominate view in the USA is that discrimination is bad. We're still a capitalist nation, and when one wants to make money, the best thing to remember is that green is always green.

~String

 

that actually is one of the things set in the acts i belive (though im not 100% sure). Ironically it DID cause some problems because of buinesses habbits of putting the baby changing rooms in the female toilets (dont think they had thought about the fact that SINGLE DAD"s exist too not to mention "dad has the kids while mum is off doing something else" ect). Oddly disabled toilets DO apear to be unisex for the most part

 

Public restrooms with changing stations for fathers and mothers are the norm where I've been (USA, Canada, W.Europe). "Family" restrooms are popping up everywhere here too.

~String

 

But how would the commissioner know to investigate if there had been no complaints? But I have no understanding of Australia's laws. They're obviously quite different from the US.

 

What's a family restroom?