Download Your Free Checklist Sexual Harassment and Sex Discrimination Audit & Risk Assessment Tool
This tool assists businesses comply with their new positive duty to eliminate sexual harassment and sex discrimination. It will help you identify risks of these matters occurring in your workplace and assist you in identifying appropriate controls to put in place to manage those risks. Simply fill in the following form and access your free Sexual Harassment and Sex Discrimination Audit & Risk Assessment Tool and start using it within your business.
What duties do employers have to eliminate sexual harassment and sex discrimination?
Under changes to the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) passed in December 2022, employers have duties to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate, as far as possible:ย
- Sexual harassment (being unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature);
- Harassment on the ground of sex (being unwelcome conduct based on the sex of the person, but not necessarily sexual in nature);ย
- Discrimination on the ground of a personโs sex (being differential treatment based on the sex of the person);ย
- Conduct that subjects a person to a hostile workplace environment on the ground of sex (being conduct that results in an offensive, intimidating and humiliating environment for people of one sex, but not necessarily directed at a person);ย
- Acts of victimisation that relate to complaints, proceedings, assertions or allegations in relation to the conduct set out above.
In this document we collectively refer to the conduct listed above as โsexual harassment and sex discriminationโ. Workplaceโฏsexual harassment can cause both psychological and physical harm, making it a risk to health and safety. Employers therefore also have duties under work health and safety legislation to do all that they reasonably can to eliminate or minimise the risk of sexual harassment at work.ย
These duties apply to sexual harassment between workers, and to workers being sexually harassed by other people at the workplace, like customers and clients. In order to comply with their duties we recommend that employers carry out an audit to assess this risks of sexual harassment and sex discrimination in their business and then implement appropriate controls to manage those risks. This tool assists businesses to do exactly that.
Under changes to the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) passed in December 2022, employers have duties to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate, as far as possible:ย
- Sexual harassment (being unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature);
- Harassment on the ground of sex (being unwelcome conduct based on the sex of the person, but not necessarily sexual in nature);ย
- Discrimination on the ground of a personโs sex (being differential treatment based on the sex of the person);ย
- Conduct that subjects a person to a hostile workplace environment on the ground of sex (being conduct that results in an offensive, intimidating and humiliating environment for people of one sex, but not necessarily directed at a person);ย
- Acts of victimisation that relate to complaints, proceedings, assertions or allegations in relation to the conduct set out above.
In this document we collectively refer to the conduct listed above as โsexual harassment and sex discriminationโ. Workplaceโฏsexual harassment can cause both psychological and physical harm, making it a risk to health and safety. Employers therefore also have duties under work health and safety legislation to do all that they reasonably can to eliminate or minimise the risk of sexual harassment at work.ย
These duties apply to sexual harassment between workers, and to workers being sexually harassed by other people at the workplace, like customers and clients. In order to comply with their duties we recommend that employers carry out an audit to assess this risks of sexual harassment and sex discrimination in their business and then implement appropriate controls to manage those risks. This tool assists businesses to do exactly that.
Commonly asked questions about sexual discrimination and harassment in the workplace
What constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace?
Sexual harassment includes unwelcome sexual advances or requests, or any other verbal, non-verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature that creates a hostile or intimidating work environment.
How should employees report incidents of sexual harassment?
Employees should report incidents of sexual harassment according to the procedures outlined in the company’s policies, typically by notifying a designated person, supervisor, or using a confidential reporting mechanism.
How should employers handle complaints of sexual harassment?
Employers should promptly and impartially investigate complaints of sexual harassment, take appropriate corrective action based on the findings, and ensure the confidentiality and protection of those involved in the reporting process.
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