- by Peter Farmer
- The Guardian
- Issue #2119
The union movement has welcomed the Senate’s passage of the government’s Costs Protection Bill, which will make it easier for victim-survivors of workplace sexual harassment to pursue legal action against perpetrators.
The Bill removes one of the main deterrents that victim-survivors face when considering court action – the risk of being burdened with the other side’s legal costs, which can result in significant debt or bankruptcy.
Under the Bill’s new ‘equal access’ costs model, workers can assert their rights in federal courts, without fearing hefty costs. The new model applies to all Commonwealth sexual harassment and anti-discrimination laws, restricting courts from ordering applicants to pay respondents’ costs except in limited cases.
The ACTU is part of a broad coalition of over 85 organisations, the Power to Prevent coalition, including National Legal Aid and the Kingsford Legal Centre, which have been advocating for the new costs model.
According to ACTU research, only 1 in 230,000 victim-survivors of workplace sexual harassment bring proceedings to an Australian court.
The Australian Human Rights Commission estimates that nearly 1 in 5 workers are sexually harassed at work each year, yet only 444 cases have ever been brought to court since 1984 according to the ANU, allowing many perpetrators to evade accountability.
The model already exists in international jurisdictions, including federal civil rights and anti-discrimination laws in the United States.
ACTU President Michelle O’Neil called the bill “a massive step forward in holding perpetrators accountable and making workplaces safer for everyone.”
Victoria Legal Aid Special Advisor Melanie Schleiger said that the change “removes a significant barrier and addresses the power imbalance between victim-survivors and their employers – who often have legal teams and large budgets to defend claims.”
Victorian Legal Aid ran over 1,000 case files, but during that time, only 4 clients proceeded to hearing and final judgement.
Kingsford Legal Centre Director Emma Golledge hailed the decision, saying that sexual harrassment “has lasting and damaging effects on people. To prevent sexual harassment, we must support victim-survivors to assert their rights.
“Enforcing your rights shouldn’t bankrupt you, and people who experience sexual harassment shouldn’t be forced to end their claims because of this fear.”
“Community Legal Centres have long campaigned for this reform, and we hope this not only increases justice for people who are affected by sexual harassment but contributes to the prevention of it and creates safer workplaces for all.”
