In partnership with the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI), Commissioner Jenkins led
a research project to understand current approaches to how companies are collecting, using, and
reporting data regarding sexual harassment. The project involved a set of consultations with 16 ASX200
companies, as well as a survey that 118 ASX200 companies completed. The report, Equality Across the
Board: Investing in Workplaces that Work for Everyone, was launched on 17 June 2021, and was promoted
broadly throughout investor and employer audiences. The report makes six recommendations for
company boards on the actions they can take to prevent and respond to sexual harassment within the
workplace. The recommendations focus on the need for boards to demonstrate leadership, develop the
requisite skills and expertise on gender and sexual harassment, align executive appointments and
performance management with the organisation’s values, build positive workplace culture, improve
transparency through internal and external reporting, and ensure relevant systems and frameworks are
in place to collect and analyse data regarding sexual harassment. It makes two recommendations to
investors on their role to hold companies accountable. Specifically, it recommends that investors seek
information about the systems and frameworks in place in their investee companies, and that they
advocate for improved transparency. The report has generated interest and positive feedback from
corporate, investor, regulator, and non-government organisation audiences.
Commissioner Jenkins has collaborated with several organisations, including the Minerals Council of
Australia, Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE), the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD),
the Fair Work Commission, Comcare, and others, to implement the Respect@Work framework that aims
to strengthen the prevention of and response to sexual harassment in the workplace. As a result, these
organisations have enhanced protections against sexual harassment within their workplaces by improving
risk mitigation strategies, implementing positive initiatives to improve workplace culture, building capacity
of workplace leaders, and redesigning policies, procedures, and reporting mechanisms so that they are
easily accessible and victim centric.
Respect@Work has set the foundation upon which other reviews into the nature and prevalence of sexual
harassment have been conducted, including the Independent Review into Commonwealth Parliamentary
Workplaces, the South Australian Review into Sexual Harassment in the Legal Profession, and the Review
of Sexual Harassment in Victorian Courts and VCAT.
42
Australian Human Rights Commission
Annual Report 2020–2021