Equality Talks: Taking action on workplace sexual harassment – 12 Aug 2020
Persistent, prevalent and harmful – sexual harassment and its impact on individuals and workplaces has been a constant in public conversation in recent years. What practical steps can workplaces take to prevent and respond to sexual harassment?
About the event
To launch the new edition of our Guideline: Preventing and responding to workplace sexual harassment, we held an online panel discussion exploring the systemic drivers of workplace sexual harassment, why traditional employer responses have failed and what a renewed approach to addressing workplace sexual harassment might look like.
Watch a recording of the event
About the guideline
Guideline: Preventing and responding to workplace sexual harassment helps employers to meet their positive duty under the Equal Opportunity Act 2010 to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate sexual harassment.
For the first time, the guideline includes six minimum standards that will help employers to tackle the underlying drivers of sexual harassment, break down barriers that deter victims from reporting and build safe, respectful workplaces.
The guideline is complemented by a new interactive sexual harassment response tool that will be publicly available on the Commission’s website. Using chatbot technology, the response tool provides a private online conversation to help users recognise sexual harassment at work, take bystander or first-responder action in response, or choose support and further referral services if needed.
On the panel
The Equality Talks event was chaired by Kristen Hilton, Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner.
Equality talks is the Commission’s event series that focuses on understanding and applying equal opportunity and human rights principles in our everyday lives.