Queensland employers will face a legal requirement to prevent discrimination in the workplace from July 1, 2025, after the passage of a major workplace protections bill in state parliament.
Amendments to the state’s Anti-Discrimination Act, passed on Tuesday through the Respect at Work and Other Matters Amendment Bill, will impose a positive duty on businesses, organisations and government agencies to prevent discrimination.
This upgraded responsibility means employers must work to prevent discrimination from occurring in the workplace, instead of reacting to improper conduct when it happens.
The reforms represent some of the strongest state-based legislation focused on curtailing toxic workplace cultures.
In a statement, Premier Steven Miles said the rules “put the onus on an employer” to create safer environments.
“It’s simply unacceptable that this sort of harassment could take place in the workplace, which is why I’m sending a clear message that it must stop,” he said.
Under the legislation, employers or persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs) will face a legal requirement to prevent discrimination on the basis of sex, race, age, religion, and sexuality.
But the amendments also update and expand the definition of discrimination.
Employers will be required to prevent discrimination against victim-survivors of domestic and family violence, and those experiencing homelessness.
In addition, employers will have a duty to prevent discrimination related to physical appearance, irrelevant medical records, and irrelevant criminal records.
Beyond discrimination, vilification — broadly defined as serious conduct that expresses hatred, ridicule, or severe disrespect against someone based on their personal attributes — is expressly forbidden by the positive duty.
The changes build upon reforms enacted in 2022 through the federal Respect at Work Bill, which levelled a positive duty on employers to prevent sex discrimination, harassment and victimisation in the workplace.
However, the new Queensland legislation goes beyond the federal bill, expanding the positive duty to include prevention and elimination of discrimination on the basis of all protected attributes — not just sex.
It also expands upon the positive duty obligations used in jurisdictions like Victoria, Tasmania, the ACT, and the NT.
Other reforms modelled on the landmark federal Respect at Work legislation will also come into effect.
Sex-based harassment, and subjecting people to workplaces considered offensive, humiliating or intimidating on the basis of their sex, will both become unlawful.
Minister for Health, Mental Health and Ambulance Services and Minister for Women Shannon Fentiman said strengthening those laws will help protect women in the workplace.
“We know that women are more likely to experience this and that men are more likely to be the harasser,” she said.
By establishing a positive duty at the state level, the reforms task all Queensland employers with creating safer spaces.
“It is critical that our community understands that sexual harassment isn’t just a women’s issue, it is a whole of community issue, and we all have a role to play in creating change,” she said.
The Queensland Human Rights Commission says it will develop guidance materials for employers in the coming months, before the positive duty comes into effect on July 1 next year.
However, Rachel Drew, managing partner at law firm Holding Redlich, says employers and PCBUs can start preparing for the changes now.
“To ensure compliance on a practical level, employers and PCBUs should ensure that there are organisational policies which address respectful behaviour in the workplace and that employees are aware of these policies, engage in discussions with staff about the expectation of respectful behaviour and, where necessary, conduct disciplinary discussions with persons displaying disrespectful or unlawful conduct,” Drew tells SmartCompany.
“What is a ‘reasonable’ and ‘proportionate’ measure will vary from one employer or PCBU to the next and depend on the size, nature and circumstances of the operation, the resources available, the cost and practicality of the measure and operational priorities, as well as any other relevant matter.”
Employer groups are celebrating an additional change included in the bill: stronger penalties for offences against people at their place of work.
Updated sentencing guidelines ask the judiciary to consider the fact an offence occurred in a workplace as an aggravating factor.
Australian Retailers Association CEO Paul Zahra welcomed the change, saying assaults against customer service staff are unacceptable.
“This has been an important area of advocacy and we welcome QLD’s commitment to workplace safety that will see harsher penalties for offenders who assault people at work,” he said in a statement.
“While this legislation is a step in the right direction, we want to see harsher penalties for people committing violence in retail-specific work settings.
“No one should go to work fearing for their safety, but unfortunately this is the reality for many retail workers.”
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Senior Business Journalist
Focused on the small business sector, David’s work covers the political, regulatory, and economic issues facing Australian entrepreneurs. Prior to joining SmartCompany, he was a reporter for Business Insider Australia. You can follow him on LinkedIn.
