Managing reports of sexual harassment

Employers should always respond quickly and appropriately to reports of sexual harassment.

Contact police on Triple Zero (000) when:

• someone is in immediate danger
• a crime is in progress
• you need immediate police attendance. 

For non-urgent incidents or to report a crime that has already occurred:

• call the Police Assistance Line on 131 444 (available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week)
• submit an online report at online reporting.police.vic.gov.au
• contact your nearest police station. 

Referring a matter to police does not mean that employers take no internal action. Any report of sexual harassment in the working environment is an occupational health and safety (OHS) matter, whether the police are contacted or not.

Employers should have a clear system in place to respond to reports of sexual harassment. This should address:

• immediate safety issues and any ongoing risks in the working environment, including at work-related events
• preferred options for any medical treatment, where appropriate
• psychological support for all involved parties
• internal reporting and investigation
• how to apply investigation outcomes in a timely manner
• notifications required to external agencies such as:
  • police
  • fire
  • ambulance
  • Child Protection
  • WorkSafe Victoria.

Employers must consult with employees and any HSRs when developing policies and procedures for preventing and managing sexual harassment. These should include:

• reporting procedures and investigating incidents
• guidelines on when to call the police, ambulance or other external services
• possible sanctions and actions against perpetrators
• testing and maintaining of communication systems and duress equipment
• employee supervision and monitoring
• guidelines for managers/supervisors on how to:
  • provide options for immediate psychological support
  • develop a plan and options for ongoing support
• guidelines for reviewing patients or clients who display harmful behaviours, such as sexual harassment.

Employers should provide training for anyone who may handle a report of sexual harassment. This includes:

• managers
• supervisors
• HSRs
• union delegates
• other nominated people in the working environment, such as contact officers.

This will help to ensure that affected employees are not harmed further.

Responding to reports of sexual harassment is an important step in the risk management process.

When deciding on the appropriate type of response – review or investigate – consider the following points:

• the nature of the hazard(s) or incident
• the level of risk involved
• the complexity of the situation
• any repeated exposure to incidents of a similar nature
• the number of employees involved or affected
• other people involved, such as clients, customers, patients or students
• for larger employers, whether an organisational response is required to manage the risk in a systematic way across multiple work sites or locations.

In some organisations, psychosocial hazards such as sexual harassment may be reported frequently, due to the nature of the work. The employer should put processes in place to consider all reports. For example, this may include reviewing reports of sexual harassment perpetrated by a particular client, patient or student together. This may:

• reduce the administrative load for an organisation
• help employers to assess if there is new information about risks in the working environment
• highlight if risk controls need to be revised.

A response to a report of sexual harassment should include the following:

• identifying whether any other psychosocial hazards are present
• identifying if there is any new or additional information available about sexual harassment
• assessing associated risks, including:
  • if new or additional information changes the risk
  • if so, how the risk has changed
• reviewing existing risk controls, including their effectiveness
• revising risk controls to eliminate or reduce the risk where necessary
• monitoring the implemented risk controls following the review or investigation
• monitoring trends in reporting data for sexual harassment and any related hazards, including across multiple sites where relevant.

It should also review and evaluate whether the risk controls available to employees were utilised and effective. For example:

• For students, clients, patients or residents engaging in sexually inappropriate behaviours, was a:
  • risk assessment completed?
  • management or support plan developed and/or reviewed?
• If a manager was present and witnessed the behaviour, was there appropriate intervention at the time of the behaviour occurring?

If available risk controls were not used, consider why.

The review or investigation should avoid placing blame on individuals and consider the reasons the risk controls may not have been used. For example:

• A risk assessment and management or support plan was not reviewed and/or updated due to the high job demands of employees who reported having insufficient time to do so.
• Management did not intervene as they were unsure how to manage the situation and had not received active bystander intervention training.

An investigation of a report of sexual harassment should:

• be done in a fair, timely and transparent way
• engage and support all parties throughout the process
• use an impartial investigator with the appropriate expertise and skills
• outline how sensitive information will be handled, including issues of privacy and confidentiality
• identify and manage any ongoing physical and psychosocial risks in the working environment
• provide appropriate information about expected reasonable timeframes and the outcomes of the investigation to all relevant parties
• communicate to all relevant parties how investigation outcomes will be carried out and incorporated into risk management processes.

The Human Resources (HR) team may do a separate investigation into a report of sexual harassment. The HR and OHS teams should work closely together to:

• share information
• identify all psychosocial hazards
• control any associated risks.

At times, employers may need to use impartial external investigators with relevant skills and expertise. For example, investigators who:

• are trained in trauma-informed interviewing techniques
• have expertise and experience in psychosocial risk management.

What is a trauma-informed approach?

A trauma-informed approach focuses on wellbeing and safety to help prevent any further harm. It recognises that:

• Employees may have experienced trauma or been exposed to traumatic events or content.
• Trauma can affect people in many ways. For example, how an employee recalls and describes events.
• Any investigation needs to be done in a way that prevents further psychological harm. For example, there is a risk of further harm if employees must explain what happened multiple times.

Employers should document and communicate the outcomes of a review or an investigation to all appropriate parties, to the extent it is necessary and consistent with confidentiality obligations. This may include:

• involved employees
• relevant supervisors or managers
• relevant representatives from HR and OHS teams.

An employer must give an HSR access to information they have about:

• relevant hazards
• the health and safety of people the HSR represents.

This does not include access to medical information.

An employee may wish to contact other agencies about a report of sexual harassment. When dealing with the report and discussing referral options, employers and other employees should respect:

• what the affected employee wants to happen
• how the affected employee would like to manage the matter.

If the affected employee wishes, it may be appropriate for them to contact:

• WorkSafe Victoria Advisory
• Victoria Police for matters that may be criminal offences
• Fair Work Commission
• Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission.