Was I sexually harassed at work?

Everyone has the right to feel safe and respected at work.

Sexual harassment is against the law in Australia. Your employer must take steps to stop it happening.

What is sexual harassment?

Sexual harassment is behaviour of a sexual nature that you did not want.

It is sexual harassment if the behaviour could make a person feel offended, humiliated, or intimidated or scared. It does not matter the other person didn’t mean to upset you.

It can happen to anyone. It does not matter what your gender, age or sexuality is.

It can happen once, or many times.

It can be sexual harassment even if you were ok with the same behaviour in the past.

Sexual harassment at work is against the law.

What does sexual harassment look like?

Sexual harassment can include:

touching, hugging or kissing when you did not want it
staring at you or looking you up and down in a sexual way
sexual jokes or comments
asking questions about your body, your relationships or your sex life
asking you out again after you have said no
sending you sexual messages, emails or images
showing you pornography or sexual pictures
comments about your body or appearance
sexual gestures or sounds
promising you a promotion, more shifts, or a pay rise if you do something sexual
threatening you because you said no to a sexual advance.

This list does not cover everything. Other things can also be sexual harassment.

Where can it happen?

Sexual harassment can happen:

at work
while you are working from home
at work parties or work social events
while you are travelling for work
online, including by email, messaging apps and social media, when it is connected to your work.

Who could be a sexual harasser?

It could be:

your boss or supervisor
someone you work with
someone you manage or supervise
a customer, client or patient
a contractor, or someone from a labour hire or agency
a volunteer
anyone you interact with while you are working.

How do I know if it was sexual harassment?

Ask yourself:

Was the behaviour unwelcome?
Was it sexual in nature?
Did it make me feel offended, humiliated, intimidated or scared? Or could it make another person feel that way?

If you answered yes, it may be sexual harassment.

You do not have to say no or ask them to stop. It can still be sexual harassment.

The person might say they were “only joking” or “didn’t mean it”. It can still be sexual harassment.

The person might also say you encouraged or agreed to the behaviour, or that you “went along with it.” What was happening at the time matters. You may not have felt able to say no because:

there was a power imbalance, such as where the person was your manager or supervisor, or
you were worried about your job.

You can change your mind. You might have been happy with the behaviour at first. If you then made it clear you did not want it and the person kept going, that can still be sexual harassment.

Other behaviour that is against the law

Sex-based harassment – This is behaviour that puts you down or treats you badly because of your sex or gender, even if it is not sexual.

A hostile work environment – This is where the way people behave in your workplace, and the atmosphere they create, makes you feel scared, intimidated, humiliated or offended

Victimisation – It is against the law for anyone to punish you because you complained about sexual harassment, or because you supported someone else’s complaint. Punishing you could look like cutting shifts, moving you to another job, or treating you badly at work.

What can I do?

If you think you have been sexually harassed, you can choose what feels right for you. You do not have to decide straight away, and you do not have to do all these things. These are some options:

Keep notes about what happened, including dates, times, what was said or done, and who else was there.
Save emails, text messages or screenshots. Keep copies somewhere safe outside work, such as a personal email account.
Get advice from your union, a lawyer or a community legal service.
Tell the person to stop, if you feel safe doing so.
Report the behaviour to your manager, HR or another appropriate person at work. If the person who has harassed you is your manager, you may want to get advice first.
Make an external complaint – you don’t need to report internally before complaining externally. Where you can complain depends on who you work for.
- Most workers in NSW can complain to the Australian Human Rights Commission or Anti-Discrimination NSW, and may be able to apply to the Fair Work Commission.
- If you’re a public servant in NSW or a local government employee in NSW, you can make a complaint to the Industrial Relations Commission. The Fair Work Commission is not open to you.
  - You usually cannot complain to more than one of these about the same behaviour. Choosing one can stop you using the other later. A lawyer can help you work out which one fits your situation.

Time limits apply, and some of them are short. Get advice as soon as you can.

Does my employer have responsibilities?

Yes. Your employer must take reasonable and proportionate steps to stop sexual harassment happening at work. This means they should:

have clear policies about sexual harassment
train their staff
deal with complaints quickly
take appropriate action when there is a problem.

If someone’s behaviour at work made you feel uncomfortable because it was sexual, get legal advice.

You do not have to work out on your own whether the law has been broken before asking for help. That is our job.

Support

If you need an interpreter, call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask them to call us.

If you are d/Deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech impairment, contact us through TTY on 133 677, Speak and Listen on 1300 555 727, or Internet Relay via the National Relay Service website.

Need support, not legal advice? Call Full Stop Australia on 1800 385 578, or 13YARN at 13 92 76 if you are First Nations.