We already reported here the adoption, on September 2021, of the Sex Discrimination and Fair Work (Respect at Work) Amendment Bill, which seeks to give effect to some of the key recommendations of the landmark Respect@Work Report about workplace sexual harassment, expanding the scope of existing sexual harassment prohibitions in Australia.

In the same direction, the Australian Government introduced this new Bill, aiming to implement seven of the 55 recommendations from the Australian Human Rights Commission’s (AHRC) Respect@Work Report.

The key provisions of the Bill are the following: 

- Introduction of a positive duty in the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) (SDA) on employers and duty holders to take reasonable and proportionate measures (considering the size and nature of the business, resources available, and practicability and costs) to eliminate, as far as possible, unlawful sex discrimination, sexual harassment, sex-based harassment, work environments that are hostile on the ground of sex, and victimisation concerning these matters. It reflects the primary recommendation of the Respect @ Work Report (Recommendation 17). It expands the scope of the recommended duty to cover new prohibitions against sex-based harassment (already introduced by the Sex Discrimination and Fair Work ((Respect at Work)) Amendment Bill 2021). The AHRC can enforce compliance with the positive duty and inquire into systemic discrimination. The positive duty obligation will commence 12 months after Royal Assent, providing employers time to comply.

- Creation of a new prohibition against conduct that subjects another person to a hostile work environment on the ground of sex and adding a new object to the SDA to eliminate, as far as possible, discrimination involving workplace environments that are hostile on the grounds of sex. The introduction of this provision is intended to cover any ‘gap’ that may be present in the SDA for this type of conduct, clarifying what is unacceptable conduct in the workplace. 

- Introduction of class actions that allow representative bodies, such as unions, to make representative applications in the Federal Courts on behalf of one or more individuals who have experienced unlawful discrimination.

Employers should review their practices and policies to comply with the new changes.