Activity details
Establish a Respect at Work Taskforce (Taskforce) within SafeWork NSW focused on reducing sexual harassment and other gender-based harms in the workplace. The Taskforce will:
- Raise awareness that workplace sexual harassment is a work health and safety (WHS) issue and the responsibility of employers to eliminate or minimise it.
- Educate and equip workplaces to prevent and respond to workplace sexual harassment.
- Drive better WHS regulatory outcomes for workplace sexual harassment.
The Taskforce will focus on targeted high-risk industries and at-risk worker groups, and on broader work across the NSW and Commonwealth Governments to ensure alignment and targeted action.
Implementation progress update
In November 2022, the new Taskforce was established within SafeWork NSW to focus on combatting sexual harassment across NSW workplaces through the WHS framework.
The Taskforce has 12 staff members. The team covers policy, education, training and communications skillsets as well as an inspectorate team of a manager and 4 inspectors.
The Taskforce within SafeWork NSW is continuing to implement its four-year Respect at Work Strategy, which was published in October 2023. Resources, including a control measures guide, have been developed and are now accessible through the website. For more information see Respect at work.
The Taskforce stood up a new, dedicated Respect at Work website in October 2023. The website is a hub for NSW workplaces to access tools and resources in a user-friendly way, encouraging further customer action. It aims to motivate a person conducting a business or undertaking to proactively prevent sexual harassment and to provide them with advice and guidance on how to approach prevention. Resources, including webinars have been developed and are now accessible through the website. For more information see Respect at work.
On 28 June 2024, NSW became one of the first Australian jurisdictions to adopt the model Code of Practice: Sexual and gender-based harassment (Code). The Code offers practical guidance to businesses on how to eliminate or reduce the risk of sexual or gender-based harassment in workplaces.
SafeWork NSW supports workplaces across NSW to proactively prevent sexual harassment and to provide them with advice and guidance on how to approach prevention. Hospitality workers have a higher-than-average chance of experiencing workplace sexual harassment (Time for Respect: Australian Human Rights Commission, 2022). In response SafeWork NSW, led by the Taskforce, visited 38 bar, pub and club venues across NSW in December 2024 and January 2025. Inspectors issued 16 improvement notices to 11 venues during this compliance project activity.
More information
- Learn about the National Plan to End Violence against women and children 2022-2032.
- Read the First Action Plan 2023-2027.
- Browse the First Action Plan 2023-2027 Activities Addendum update.