The Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. Photo: Michelle Smith
Queensland Health has been ordered to pay a woman $9000 after her female boss asked her to join in a lesbian threesome.
Karen Bell claimed she suffered pathological injury and humiliation while working as the food supervisor at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital’s Connect Cafe in 2011 and 2012.
Bell told a state tribunal her line manager Lindy Ralph sexually harassed her on several occasions.
During a work function in late 2011, Bell said Ralph told her, “I’m not wearing any undies.”
While she drove Ralph back to work after the function, her boss allegedly said: “I’m sitting in your leather seats with no undies on.”
At another work function on December 17, 2011, Ralph allegedly asked her to take part in a threesome with another female colleague.
Bell claimed during early 2012 Ralph bullied and publicly belittled her because she had rejected her sexual advances.
Another colleague told the tribunal Ralph was unnecessarily aggressive to Bell, including yelling at her in front of customers.
The harassment had reached such a point Bell alleged she had constant headaches and vomited before work at times.
To escape the abuse, she took a lower classification role before quitting Queensland Health.
She said Queensland Health took no steps to stop Ms Ralph from contravening the Anti-Discrimination Act.
In a decision published on Wednesday, the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal ruled in Bell’s favour.
“I find that the sexual harassment on 17 December, 2011, materially contributed to, and therefore caused, a personal injury being an adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood,” the judgment says.
“The other main contributory factor being the bullying and harassing conduct of Ms Ralph in early 2012.”
The tribunal ordered Queensland Health and Ralph to jointly pay $9000 compensation to Bell.
AAP