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Joel Zyngier

Principal , Melbourne Direct: +61 3 9611 8812 jzyngier@gclegal.com.au

Joel is the national head of Gilchrist Connell’s Employment Practices Liability / Management Liability practice. He has extensive experience in workplace relations and safety law, and in 2012 was certified by the Law Institute of Victoria as an Accredited Specialist in Workplace Relations. Joel assists clients defend the full gamut of employment law claims and investigations and prosecutions by work health and safety (and other) regulators.

Joel acts for insurers and self-insured clients, primarily under Employment Practices Liability and Management Liability or similarly named policies. He has acted in employment law and industrial disputes at almost every level of State and Federal court and tribunals, and has acted for witnesses in various public inquiries into corruption (including a Royal Commission and an IBAC investigation).

Joel also deploys his extensive experience in ‘front end’ employment and work health and safety law to assist insured or self-insured organisations address their risk in these areas, for example, by drafting employment agreements, and workplace policies and guidelines. This has given Joel a deep understanding of areas of potential risk for insured organisations which is invaluable for claims managers, underwriters, risk managers and brokers operating in the EPL/ML space.

The mainly federal nature of the workplace relations and safety jurisdiction means that Joel acts in EPL and ML claims throughout Australia, utilising the full resources of Gilchrist Connell’s existing EPL/MPL experience across its Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Sydney and Brisbane offices.

Joel provides media comment on employment law development and regularly presents a range of educational seminars on employers’ obligations under employment and work health & safety legislation, and about how employers can reduce their risks of employee claims.

In his spare time, Joel enjoys martial arts and practising his extensive negotiation skills with the most challenging of opponents – his two young daughters.

Articles and Presentations

Presentation on restraints & confidential information October 2022

Presentation for insurers on EPL October 2022

Workplace relations and safety in 2021 – the year that was November 2021

Presentation Employee entitlements amid a pandemic -considerations for advisors Hannah Griffiths October 2021

Presentation – Volunteer, employee or contractor September 2021

Presentation – Statutory liability (OHS) in Victoria September 2021

Presentation – Know the risks – pre-employment medical information September 2021

Presentation – Fitness for work: evaluation, examination & termination August 2021

What are your rights if the vaccine becomes mandatory? A Current Affair, Channel 9, 4 June 2021

Presentation for insurers on employee underpayments August 2020

Presentation for insurers on impact of COVID-19 on EPL and statutory liability – August 2020

Presentation on Fair and reasonable performance management and disciplinary action – November 2019

Presentation on Managing the risks arising from an internal investigation – November 2019

Presentation to insurers on labour hire licensing legislation and insurance implications May 2019

Presentation to insurers in insurability of fines and penalties in Australia December 2018

Presentation to insurers on Wellbeing@work: reducing risks, improving performance

Presentation to insurers on Out of hours conduct and social media – Liability exposure and risk management: what employers and their insurers need to know.

Presentation to insurers on the powers of Worksafe and an Insured’s rights

Presentation to insurers on common EPL claims and coverage / indemnity pitfalls

Presentation to insurers on costs in Fair Work Act proceedings

Presentations to insurers on Respect in Workplace
OHS injuries and penalties

Presentation to insurers on statutory liability (OHS) in Victoria

Presentation to insurers on employees and independent contractors

Presentation to insurers on EPL / SL claims

Tips, tricks and avoiding pitfalls in employing and dismissing employees

EPL seminar for international insurers

Damages in sexual harassment and discrimination cases
Employment law seminar series for Insurers

The future of reasonable notice (2011) 85(6) LIJ 52


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