Sexual harassment and sex or gender-based harassment are treated in Queensland as work health and safety risks, not just HR issues. Employers have a positive obligation to prevent harm, not simply respond after something goes wrong.
In Practice
Employers must take active steps to identify, assess and manage the risk of sexual harassment and sex or gender-based harassment in their workplaces, in the same way they manage other safety risks.
This obligation applies even if no incident has occurred.
Prevention Plan – mandatory from 1 March 2025
Queensland employers are required to have a written Sexual Harassment Prevention Plan where there is a risk of harassment (which applies to most workplaces).
The plan must:
- Identify the specific harassment risks in the business
- Set out practical controls to eliminate or minimise those risks
- Consider worker and workplace factors (e.g. power imbalance, remote work, FIFO, client-facing roles, alcohol-related work)
- Describe how workers were consulted
- Clearly explain how reports will be handled
- Be easy to access and understand
Ongoing responsibilities
Employers must:
- Regularly review and update control measures
- Revisit the prevention plan after any report or material change
- Make sure workers know about the plan and how to access it
- Provide appropriate training and leadership oversight
Directors and senior management have a personal duty to ensure these systems are in place and working.
Failure to comply can result in WHS penalties, regulatory intervention, personal exposure for officers, and reputational damage.
Having a policy on paper is not enough. Employers must be able to show that risks were considered and managed.