Program at a Glance

Thursday 9 October 2025
Welcome Reception
Friday 10 October 2025
Conference opening
Conference sessions
Conference Dinner
Saturday 11 October 2025
Conference sessions
Conference close
Optional evening activity
Thursday 26 October 2023
1730 – 1900 Welcome Reception
Friday 27 October 2023
0845 – 0915 Conference Opening Ceremony | Chair: Neroli Ellis, ALERA President

Welcome Address | Neroli Ellis, ALERA President
Welcome to Country | Uncle Rodney Dillon
Welcome to Tasmania | Her Excellency the Honourable Barbara Baker AC, Governor of Tasmania
0915 – 1100 The Vision for IR in Australia | Panel Discussion | Chair: Prof Rae Cooper AO, University of Sydney

Liam O’Brien, Australian Council Trade Unions Assistant Secretary
Justice Adam Hatcher, President Fair Work Commission
Jessica Tinsley, Director of Workplace Relations, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Dr Caleb Goods, President, Australian Industrial Relations Academics of Australia and New Zealand
1100 – 1130 Morning Refreshments
1130 – 1200 Political Aspirations for IR – virtual presentations | Chair: Neroli Ellis, Tasmanian Industrial Commission

Hon Tony Burke, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations (virtual)
Sen. Hon. Michaelia Cash, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations (virtual)
Senator Barbara Pocock, Greens Spokesperson for Employment (virtual)
1200 – 1230 Presentation by the Fair Work Ombudsman | Chair: Neroli Ellis, Tasmanian Industrial Commission

Anna Booth, Fair Work Ombudsman
1230 – 1300 Discrimination and Sexual Harassment Case Law Review | Chair: Virginia Wills, National Tertiary Education Union

Josh Bornstein, Principal Lawyer, National Head of Employment Maurice Blackburn
1300 – 1400 Lunch
1400 – 1530 Equality at Work in 2023 and Beyond | Panel Discussion | Chair: Fiona Corbett, Australian Business Lawyers & Advisors  

Prof Rae Cooper AO, Professor of Gender, Work and Employment Relations, University of Sydney
Mary Mallett, Interim Disability Commissioner Tasmania
Rodney Croome AM, Equality Tasmania
Prof Nareen Young, Associate Dean (Indigenous Leadership & Engagement), UTS Business School
1530 – 1600 Afternoon Refreshments
1600 – 1710 Case Study on Child Sex Offender Working on the Children’s Ward and the Breakdown in Workplace Systems | Chair: Craig Green, Dobson Mitchell Allport

Maree Norton, Barrister, Tasmanian and Victorian Bars
Emily Shepherd and Will Gordon, Secretary at Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (TAS) and CEO of the Health Education and Research Centre
John Rule, Principal Lawyer, Abuse Law Practice, Maurice Blackburn
1830 – 2330 Gala Dinner
Saturday 28 October 2023
0900 – 0930 The morning after…meet the ALERA Exec | Chair: David Dilger, Director, Edge Legal
0930 – 1040 Multi-Employer Bargaining | Panel Discussion | Chair: Natascha Boehm, The Workplace Collective Pty Ltd

Nigel Ward, CEO, Australian Business Lawyers & Advisers
Assoc Prof Chris F Wright, Associate Professor Work and Organisational Studies, University of Sydney Business School
Jess Munday, Secretary, Unions Tasmania
1040 – 1110 First Nations Voices: Our Rightful Place in IR Policy and Practice | Chair: Prof Julian Teicher, Central Queensland University

Thomas Mayo, National Indigenous Officer, Maritime Union of Australia
1110 – 1140 Morning Refreshments
1140 – 1230 The Rise of the Red Unions | Panel Discussion | Chair: Natalie Jones, Community and Public Sector Union

Jacqueline King, A/General Secretary, Queensland Unions
Chris Dekker, Director of Industrial Relations, Red Union Support Hub
1230 – 1240 Conference Close | Neroli Ellis, ALERA President