Asia-Pacific employers must consider diversity, equality and inclusion requirements

Australia

In Australia, anti-discrimination legislation is in place at both a state and federal level, prohibiting direct and indirect discrimination in the workplace based on sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, intersex status, pregnancy and breastfeeding, marital status, family responsibilities, age, race and disability discrimination and harassment. In some jurisdictions there are also laws prohibiting religious discrimination.

Law changes in December 2022 introduced a positive duty for employers to eliminate sexual harassment in the workplace, as well as new prohibitions on different types of sexual harassment. Australian safety and human rights regulators have been given increased powers to enforce compliance with these laws.

Employers are also required to treat psychosocial hazards as a safety issue, meaning sexual harassment and sex discrimination must now be treated and mitigated by employers in the same way as physical workplace safety hazards.

The ‘right to disconnect’ recently became law and will take effect in August 2024. The new law gives employees the right to refuse to do work outside ordinary hours and considers family and carer responsibilities, among other things.

Mainland China

In China, the principle that all employees should be free from discrimination based on their nationality, region of birth, race, sex, or religious belief, is upheld in employment legislation as well as separate legislation specific to a variety of sectors. These laws also cover the promotion of equal rights for women and people with disabilities.

People from certain groups, such as those with infectious pathogen, those recovering from drug addiction, those retired from military services, and those from rural areas, are also expected to receive equal treatment from their employers. In addition, despite not being recognised as a distinct group under current legislation, the LGBTIQ+ community are also expected to be treated equally by their employers.

Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR)

In Hong Kong SAR, there are laws in place protecting employees from discrimination based on sex, disability, family status – which relates to responsibility for the care of an immediate family member – and race. They are the Sex Discrimination Ordinance (Cap 480), Disability Discrimination Ordinance (Cap 487), Family Status Discrimination Ordinance (Cap 527), and the Race Discrimination Ordinance (Cap 602).

There is currently no legislation in place specifically preventing discrimination based on sexual orientation, however, some discrimination claims relating to sexual orientation may be covered by the Sex Discrimination Ordinance. There is a Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal decision holding that a legislation provision amounting to sexual orientation discrimination is unconstitutional.

Singapore

Singapore has multiple policies and regulations supporting DEI in the workplace.

Firstly, all employers in Singapore are expected to adhere to the Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices, which are intended to uphold principles of fair and merit-based employment. While the guidelines are not law, employers are strongly encouraged to abide by them as non-compliance could result in enforcement actions from the Singapore regulators.

The new Workplace Fairness Legislation (WFL) has also been announced and is expected to be passed in the second half of 2024. Expected to work alongside the guidelines, the WFL is intended to support workplace policies that make organisations more inclusive and promote employment opportunities for certain vulnerable groups that need more support, such as seniors and people with disabilities.

The WFL is expected to include prohibitions against workplace discrimination based on age, nationality, sex, marital status, pregnancy status, caregiving responsibilities, race, religion, language, disability and mental health conditions, and cover all stages of employment, from recruitment to dismissal.

Australia

Annual GPG reporting is mandatory in Australia. All employers operating in Australia with 100 or more employees are required to provide their payroll data to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) for the purposes of the Agency reporting their gender pay difference.

In February 2024, employer-specific gender pay gaps were reported publicly for the first time, expressed as a median of all employees in Australia, excluding CEOs.

In May and June 2024, employers have been required to report their payroll data inclusive of CEO remuneration for the first time. This information will be publicly released by WGEA in early 2025, expressed as a mean, not a median. Employers will have the opportunity to submit a statement explaining their gender pay gap and their initiatives to address the gap in around December 2024.

As an initiative to reduce the gender pay gap in Australia, in 2023 pay secrecy or confidentiality provisions were prohibited at law.

Mainland China

There are currently no legal requirements for employers to report discrepancies in gender pay.

However, there are requirements in place that employees working on the same job should be entitled to equal pay. There are also regulations ensuring equal rights for women during the recruitment process, including the prohibition of practices that involve inquiries about prospective employees’ marital and childbearing status or give preference to male candidates.

Hong Kong SAR

There are currently no legal requirements for employers to report discrepancies in gender pay.

However, an inference of discrimination under the Sex Discrimination Ordinance may be drawn from any pay disparity without valid reasons other than the difference of sex. The Equal Opportunities Commission recommends employers to establish structured pay systems that are free of sex bias and to conduct a voluntary self-audit process to identify and eliminate gender pay gaps.

Singapore

There are currently no specific GPG reporting requirements for employers in Singapore.

However, pursuant to the Singapore Exchange’s Listing Rules which governs companies listed on Singapore’s national stock exchange, listed companies are required to maintain and report their board diversity policy addressing gender, skills and experience, and any other relevant aspects of diversity.

Australia

It is considered best practice in Australia for employers to have:

• policies and procedures prohibiting sexual harassment, bullying and all forms of discrimination in the workplace;
• robust reporting mechanisms for discrimination or harassment;
• regular workplace training conducted for boards, leaders and all employees on respectful and appropriate workplace behaviour; and
• detailed analysis of gender pay gap and proactive policies and initiatives in place to reduce the employers gender pay gap.

Mainland China

It is considered best practice for employers to conduct comprehensive reviews of their recruitment and employment procedures, documents, and policies to ensure these do not contain any discriminatory inquiries, statements, criteria, or requirements.

Employers also benefit from having a clear whistleblowing process for employees to report potential violations of anti-discrimination rules.

Hong Kong SAR

It is best practice for employers to follow the respective Codes of Practice on Employment, published by the Equal Opportunities Commission. There are Codes for each of the four anti-discrimination ordinances, including the Sex Discrimination Ordinance, recommending good practices for employers to take in different areas – including recruiting, training, promotion and dismissals.

Singapore

Best practices in Singapore are generally outlined by the Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices, published by the Tripartite Alliance Limited, and are generally based on five principles which employers should adhere to when implementing good employment practices. They are:

• recruiting based on merit - such as skills, experience, or ability to perform the job - and regardless of age, race, gender, religion, marital status and family responsibilities, or disability;
• treating employees fairly and with respect, and implementing progressive human resource management systems;
• providing fair opportunities for employees to be considered for training and development based on their strengths and needs to help them achieve their full potential; and
• rewarding employees fairly based on their ability, performance, contribution and experience.

Employers must also abide by Singapore’s labour laws. We also recommend adopting the Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices.