Sex Discrimination: Wardley v Ansett (From Stains on a White Collar: Fourteen Studies in Corporate Crime or Corporate Harm, P 131-142, 1989, Peter Grabosky and Adam Sutton, eds. -- See NCJ-122651)

• NCJ Number: 122659
• Author(s): P Grabosky
• Date Published: 1989
• Length: 12 pages
• Sale Source: Federation Press (Distributed by Gaunt)
• Publication Type: Legislation/Policy Analysis
• Language: English
• Country: Australia

Annotation

The sex discrimination that Deborah Lawrie encountered in her efforts to become a commercial airline pilot in Australia reflected the pervasive attitudes that existed in Australian culture.

Abstract

Lawrie had performed better than male colleagues on some tests and was highly recommended on the basis of psychological tests. In addition, no previously recommended candidate for pilot training had been rejected. However, Ansett Airlines did not accept her. She concluded that her rejection occurred only because she was a woman and filed a complaint with the Equal Opportunity Board in Victoria in August 1978. Victoria was one of only three States with anti-discrimination statutes. She received a favorable ruling on her complaint, but Ansett Airlines appealed this decision and subsequent ones. In March 1980 it had lost its last appeal, and Lawrie, who married a man named Wardley, is now a commercial airline pilot. In addition, the national government enacted legislation on sex discrimination in 1984, and decisions in recent cases have reinforced the efforts against discrimination. However, the Australian policy remains a complaint-based policy, and some discrimination victims may lack the psychological or financial resources to complain. 5 references.