Summary

Implements recommendations of the Respect@Work: National Inquiry into Sexual Harassment in Australian Workplaces by amending: the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 to: prohibit conduct that subjects another person to a workplace environment that is hostile on the ground of sex; introduce a positive duty on employers to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate unlawful sex discrimination, including sexual harassment, as far as possible; state that an object of the Act is to achieve substantive equality between men and women; and amend the definition of harassment on the ground of sex to remove the reference to conduct of a 'seriously' demeaning nature; the Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986 to: enable the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) to monitor and assess compliance with the positive duty; provide the AHRC with a function to inquire into systemic unlawful discrimination; enable a representative body to progress a complaint on behalf of one or more affected persons from conciliation at the AHRC to application to the court; insert a cost protection provision; and amend one of the discretionary grounds on which a complaint may be terminated by the President of the AHRC; the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 to require Commonwealth public sector organisations to report to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency on their gender equality indicators; five Acts to clarify that victimising conduct can form the basis of a civil action for unlawful discrimination in addition to a criminal complaint; and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Act 2021, Federal Court of Australia Act 1976 and Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Act 1986 to make consequential amendments.