Sexual Harassment 'Positive Duty'
How can you ensure compliance with the new 'positive duty' obligations around sexual harassment, sex-based harassment and other related unlawful behaviour?
In response to the continual rise of sexual harassment as a 'hot topic' issue in Australian workplaces, and as part of the ongoing response to the Sex Discrimination Commissioners , the Federal Government changed the law in late 2022. New avenues for employees to pursue claims and the Human Rights Commissions powers to actually enforce the new ‘positive duty’ on employers came into effect on 12 December 2023.
The laws have imposed a new 'positive duty' on all employers. No matter what size your business, every business owner must take reasonable steps to eliminate sexual harassment and other unlawful behaviour from occurring in the workplace. Responding to complaints when they arise is no longer enough.
There is no exemption under this law - not even for small business. If reasonable steps are not taken to eliminate sexual harassment and related unlawful behaviour in the workplace, the employer could be held liable and face considerable financial and reputational damage to the business.
Now is the time to conduct a health check in your business, identify risk areas and put in place preventative measures that will reduce the risk of sexual harassment, sex-discrimination, sex-based harassment, a hostile workplace environment or victimisation in your workplace.
We have created an easy to follow toolkit that will take your business through six simple steps. Each step has a suite of tools, templates and short video to watch, setting you up for success to complete it.
Follow this six step guide and get peace of mind you are doing what the regulators will be asking if they need to investigate your business. This toolkit gives you:
- 39 page 'How-to Guide' on sexual harassment 'positive duty' in the workplace
- Seven short instructional videos to guide you through the process
- 15 tools including checklists, templates, processes to follow, draft emails and a policy document to download and use immediately in your business.
What is considered 'reasonable steps'?
To avoid liability, all employers need to demonstrate they have:
- taken all reasonable and proportionate steps to eliminate sexual harassment and related unlawful behaviour from occurring in their workplace AND
- ​responded appropriately to resolve reports or disclosures of sexual harassment and other unlawful behaviour if they arise.
​What will be considered ‘reasonable’ will of course differ from business to business, depending on things like business size, resources and the cost of taking certain precautionary steps. However, it is abundantly clear that all employers, in all business, no matter the size, need to be taking active steps to eliminate sexual harassment in the workplace before it occurs, or risk being held legally responsible. Ignorance is no defence and regulators will pursue non-compliance.
An overview of the six steps in the How-To Guide
Not sure how to start? Get the 'how-to guide' and follow the simple steps.
To help guide your business through this process, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àûhas created a toolkit that will walk you through six practical steps you can implement straight away to move towards demonstrating your 'positive duty'. This toolkit is aimed at the small business operator but should be the minimum a larger business has implemented. In this toolkit you will have access to:
- 39 page Positive Duty 'How-to Guide' on sexual harassment and other related unlawful behaviour and how to eliminate it in the workplace.
- Seven short instructional videos to guide you through the process.
- 15 tools including checklists, templates, processes to follow, draft emails, talking points, and a policy document to download and use immediately in your business.
This DIY toolkit will give your business the guidance to work through the reasonable steps required under the new laws.
Get in touch if you want a quick and easy way to fulfil your positive duty obligations as an employer. Just follow the six steps in the guide and review annually.
