Can I sue my employer for unfair treatment because of domestic violence?

Under the Fair Work Act 2009, your employer is prohibited from taking 'adverse action'—which means treating you poorly, such as firing you or threatening your job—because of your personal circumstances. Specifically, the law states that "An employer must not take adverse action against a person who is an employee... because of the person's... subjection to family and domestic violence" [cite:au-fair-work-2009-sec351]. This means that if your supervisor's threat to terminate your contract on the basis of your 'unreliability' is actually motivated by the fact that you are dealing with domestic violence, they may be breaking the law [cite:au-fair-work-2009-sec351]. Furthermore, the law extends these anti-discrimination rules specifically to cover family and domestic violence [cite:au-fair-work-2009-sec789hd]. This protection is designed to ensure that people facing violence are not further victimised by their workplace. You also have rights regarding leave. An employee is entitled to take paid family and domestic violence leave if "the employee is experiencing family and domestic violence; and (b) the employee needs to do something to deal with the impact of the family and domestic violence; and (c) it is impractical for the employee to do that thing outside the employee's work hours" [cite:au-fair-work-2009-sec106b]. Since you have been attending court hearings and meeting with support services, these actions likely fall under the protections provided for dealing with the impact of violence. It is important to note that while the law protects you from discrimination, an employer might argue that your absences interfere with the "inherent requirements of the particular position" [cite:au-fair-work-2009-sec351]. However, if your absences are covered by your right to take domestic violence leave, their ability to use those absences as a reason for termination is significantly limited.