The new positive duty introduced in December 2022 with the Sex Discrimination Act shifts the focus for employers to prevent rather than respond to unlawful conduct actively.

While emphasising that the actions required depend on the company and that there is no one-size-fits-all approach, the Guidelines identify seven standards of action for employers and four essential guiding principles. These principles to consider and apply when implementing the seven Standards are:

• A human rights-based and people-centred approach.
• The right of workers to consultation.
• The promotion of gender equality.
• The recognition of intersectionality.

The standards are taken from the critical key recommendation of the Commission’s landmark Respect@Work Report, published in March 2020, and are summarised as follows:

The standards, which are interconnected, provide a framework for preventing and responding to unlawful behaviour, which organisations and companies can adapt to their reality to fulfil their positive duty.

In any case, the Commission supports innovation, creativity, and the development of further strategies by enterprises to achieve substantial equality between men and women and promote positive workplace cultures reasonably and proportionately to the circumstances.

The Commission will refer to the Guidelines for assessing compliance with the positive duty starting from December 2023.

The Australian Human Rights Commission has also published: 

Information Guide on the Positive Duty under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth): Relevant Unlawful Conduct, Drivers, Risk Factors and Impacts. 

A Quick Guide for Complying with the Positive Duty under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth). 

A Resource for Small Business on the Positive Duty under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth).