Wielding the big stick – Lessons for enforcing anti-discrimination law from the Fair Work Ombudsman

Anti-discrimination law is enforced by a person who has experienced discrimination by lodging a complaint at a statutory equal opportunity agency. The agency is responsible for receiving and resolving discrimination complaints and educating the community; it does not play a role in enforcing the law. The agency relies on ‘carrots’ to encourage voluntary compliance, but it does not wield any ‘sticks’. This is not the case in other areas of law, such as industrial relations, where the Fair Work Ombudsman is charged with enforcing the law — including the prohibition of discrimination in the workplace — and possesses the necessary powers to do so. British academics Hepple, Coussey and Choudhury developed an enforcement pyramid for equal opportunity. This article shows that the model used by the Fair Work Ombudsman reflects what Hepple, Coussey and Choudhury propose, while anti-discrimination law enforcement would be represented as a flat, rectangular structure. The article considers the Fair Work Ombudsman’s discrimination enforcement work to date and identifies some lessons that anti-discrimination law enforcement can learn from its experience.

O ombudsman bancário: uma solução extrajudicial adequada de conflitos envolvendo bancos e clientes e seu impacto nos litígios judiciais

A alta taxa de litigância judicial envolvendo bancos e clientes afeta o funcionamento do Poder Judiciário bem como a disponibilidade do crédito e as taxas de juros de forma negativa, por contribuir para a insegurança jurídica no mercado de crédito. Este trabalho busca diagnosticar as causas dessa litigância e os seus efeitos, verificar se o ombudsman bancário pode ser um mecanismo adequado à solução de disputas no setor financeiro, contribuindo para diminuir a litigância judicial. Pretende, também, propor mudanças institucionais, por meio da regulação bancária, que estabeleçam o sistema de ombudsman setorial no Brasil, fixando incentivos e desestímulos, para que ele seja eficiente e apresente resultados mais céleres, em face da realidade brasileira.

As relações públicas em parceria com a ouvidoria e Ombudsman: gestão e ajuste para um relacionamento eficaz

This work presents as the central theme the management conducted by the Public Relations' professional regarding the custom relations' channels, focusing on Ombudsman. Its main objective is to discuss, reflect and establish a parallel between these activities, highlighting the importance of these channels on the organization’s communication and relationship process with their customers. Split in three chapters, it begins the discussion about the terminology in Ombudsman, from the meaning and concept of the terms to the comparison with other relationship means with the customer. It is a part of the study a brief history about organizations and their changes over the years, emphasizing the importance of customers and relations for the success of the modern day organizations, considering the Public Relations in this context. The discussion concludes establishing a parallel between the Ombudsman channels and the meaning of public relations in its management, regarding the relevancy of the subject in a highly competitive scenario, in which the customer/person, as a change agent, can be the responsible for the success or failure of organizations. The study tries to focus on showing the importance of the skills and competencies of the Public Relations for the fore mentioned channels, which are not well defined yet.

Birth, Development and Progressive Institutionalization of the Ombudsman in the Russian Legal and Political System

One of the current trends in governance and legal development in Russia is aimed at establishing a modern, efficient and internationally harmonised system of safeguards of human rights and civil liberties. A fairly recent addition to this system has been the institution of ombudsman as a public authority specialised in promoting and protecting human rights and civil liberties. The introduction of this institution as well as its formalisation at the constitutional and legislative levels has been increasingly relevant and important, as it raises the dealings between the state and the individual to a new level. As an independent public institution resolving conflicts between citizens and government authorities, the ombudsman makes steps, within the scope of his jurisdiction, to restitute individual rights, and helps to enhance the reputation of government. The present work describes and assesses the birth, development and institutionalization process of the Ombudsman Office in the Russian Federation, at federal and regional levels, with a particular emphasis on the role of international references and cooperation for institution building. Ombudsmen have done a magnificent job in demonstrating value with the resolution of individual and systemic complaints; subsequent improvements to government; and economic savings by mitigating litigation costs.

O ombudsman e a realidade brasileira / Ana Cláudia Allet Aguiar. --

Inclui bibliografia.

A instituição brasileira do "ombudsman" : o papel do Ministério Público da União / Daisy de Asper y Valdes. --

Estudo apresentado no seminário sobre "o ombudsman : Diversidade e desenvolvimento", promovido pelo Instituto Internacional do Ombudsman, em Edmonton, Alberta, Canadá, de 9 a 14 de agosto de 1992.

A instituição do Ombudsman : aspectos da maturidade

Inclui notas explicativas e bibliográficas