In passing its Respect@Work Bill into law today (28 November), the federal government has fulfilled its commitment to making workplaces safer for women.
The new law means all 55 recommendations of the landmark Respect@Work Report will be implemented, including several key recommendations that the former government ignored.
Significant changes include:
- New provisions prohibiting conduct that subjects another person to a workplace environment that is hostile on the grounds of sex,
- The introduction of a positive duty in the Sexual Discrimination Act on all employers to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate sex discrimination, sexual harassment and sex-based harassment, hostile environments and victimisation at work,
- New provisions in the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) Act which enable the Australian Human Rights Commission to monitor and assess compliance with the positive duty and also gives AHRC enforcement powers for the first time,
