New data shows 95% of 460 sexual harassment complaints to the AHRC are employment-related
Most sexual harassment complaints filed with the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) are related to employment, according to reports, as authorities lamented the resolution timeframe for such cases.
Data obtained and reported by ABC News revealed that the AHRC received a record 759 complaints under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 last financial year, up 21% from the previous year and 51% higher over the past five years.
Among them were 460 sexual harassment complaints, of which 95% were related to employment.
Dominique Allen, a discrimination law professor at Monash University in Melbourne, told ABC News that the rise in complaints could indicate greater awareness of workplace rights rather than an increase in incidents of sexual harassment.
She pointed out, however, that complaint demand was growing faster than the system's capacity to process the cases.
The data reported by ABC News showed that Queensland had an average wait of 246 days for allocation and 424 days to finalisation. In South Australia, complaints were allocated within a week.
Elsewhere, workplace sexual harassment complaints in Victoria are processed within one to two weeks and resolved in about two months. In New South Wales, 84 complaints are awaiting allocation, and 98% are resolved within a year.
"We need more money and expertise put into this so that these claims can be handled more effectively," Allen told ABC News.
Sexual harassment in Australian workplaces
The findings come as sexual harassment remains a prevalent issue in Australian workplaces, despite being unlawful nationally since 1984.
The Diversity Council of Australia (DCA) said data showed that 18% of workers continue to experience sexual harassment at work, indicating that existing measures are "not enough to prevent workplace sexual harassment."
The DCA's latest report urged workplaces to foster inclusion, as its findings indicate that greater inclusion at work can protect employees against sexual harassment.
"For some organisations, this approach can lift accountability, support stronger resourcing, and drive greater leader and employee participation in inclusion initiatives," the DCA report read.
"Inclusion does not happen by chance: organisations need a clear action plan with defined goals, messages, activities, partnerships, timing, and visible senior leadership commitment."
