The Respect@Work Council Forum was held on Thursday 7 July.
The Respect@Work Council was established in response to a key recommendation of the Australian Human Rights Commission's Respect@Work Report. The Council is Chaired by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins and brings together leaders from key government regulators and policy makers responsible for sexual harassment policies and complaints to improve coordination, consistency and clarity across existing workplace, safety and human rights legal and regulatory frameworks. The Council is supported by bodies representing the experience of workers and employers. The Council has oversight of more than 20 of the Respect@Work Report recommendations
After 12 months operation, the Council's Forum was an opportunity to bring together people working to prevent and address sexual harassment, including Council members and representatives from government, business and employer groups, unions and other support services including legal assistance and working women's centres, people with lived experience and academics and NGO sector.
The Attorney-General, the Hon Mark Dreyfus QC, opened the Forum with a commitment to implement all recommendations of the Respect@Work Report and to strengthen laws and systems to prevent and address sexual harassment, and support those who have experienced sexual harassment.
The Forum highlighted the work undertaken by the Respect@Work Council to date and offered an opportunity for Council members to reflect on how Respect@Work has influenced the approach to sexual harassment in their roles.
Commissioner Jenkins acknowledged the contribution of these sectors and thanked them for their continued engagement.
"The diversity of organisations at the Forum reflects the whole of community approach that must be taken to stop sexual harassment and effect meaningful and sustainable change," Commissioner Jenkins said.
The Forum was designed with a trauma-informed approach, to centre those with lived experience of sexual harassment; while facilitating learning and reflections on how people interact with systems and processes, the reforms underway, and areas for further reform.
Further information
Information about the Respect@Work Council is available on the Attorney-General's Department website.
Information about the Forum will be included on the Respect@Work Council webpage. Recordings of the opening session, including the remarks of the Attorney-General and the Sex Discrimination Commissioner and members of the Respect@Work Council, will be available on the Respect@Work webpage shortly.
Support
If you or someone you know needs support or advice, you can contact 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732) for free, national telephone advice. For information and referrals on discrimination issues, you can contact the Australian Human Rights Commission on 1800 656 419, or email infoservice@humanrights.gov.au, or visit the Human Rights website.
