Workplace Sexual Harassment
Photo by Mihai Surdu on Unsplash
What is Sexual Harassment?
Sexual harassment is any unwanted or unwelcome sexual behaviour where a reasonable person would have anticipated the possibility that the person harassed would feel offended, humiliated or intimidated. Examples of sexual harassment in the workplace includes, but is not limited to;
Staring, leering or unwelcome touching
Suggestive comments or jokes
Intrusive questions about a person's private life or body
Unnecessary familiarity, such as deliberately brushing up against a person
Emailing pornography or rude jokes
Communicating content of a sexual nature through social media or text messages.
Respect@Work Report
In June 2018, the Australian Human Rights Commission launched their inquiry into workplace sexual harassment, influenced by the #MeToo movement. The results of this inquiry were captured in the Respect@Work report with some confronting findings, including that one in three people experienced workplace sexual harassment in the past five years.
Sex Discrimination and Fair Work (Respect at Work) Amendment Bill 2021
On Thursday, 24 June 2021 the Sex Discrimination and Fair Work (Respect at Work) Amendment Bill 2021 was introduced as a government initiative to help combat workplace sexual harassment. The legislation:
Clarifies that sexual harassment can be a valid reason for dismissal under the FW Act;
Clarifies that harassment on the basis of sex is prohibited under the Sex Discrimination Act;
Provides security to volunteers, interns and self-employed persons who are now covered in the scope of the Act;
Broadens the scope of the people covered by the SD Act, including volunteers, interns and self-employed persons;
Clarify that a victimisation complaint can be considered either a civil or criminal matter;
Extends the timeframe for which complaints can be made to the Australian Human Rights Commission; and
Amends the FW Act to allow an employee to take compassionate leave if they, or their spouse or de facto partner, have a miscarriage.
Although there have been criticisms that the legislation does not have strong enough consequences for breachers, and there are loopholes, this is a positive step forward towards a no tolerance culture for workplace sexual harassment. All employers have a responsibility to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in employment, such as implementing a sexual harassment policy and providing training on such misconduct.
All employees have the right to work in a safe, gender-equal and inclusive workplace.