December 2021 A reform agenda for federal discrimination laws 4 The Commission’s approach to reform In this Position Paper the Commission sets out four integrated sets of reforms to improve the effectiveness of federal discrimination laws. The Commission’s proposals are practical, building on past reform exercises and lessons learned. We propose that reforms be staged. Some reforms are urgently needed to address existing, known problems with the operation of federal discrimination laws. These reforms can be implemented immediately and are well overdue. Some reforms require process responses, such as by embedding a periodic review of exemptions to ensure they remain appropriate at all times. Other reforms are transformational, moving beyond the limitations of the existing model. These are focused on modernising the regulatory framework: • turning it into a more proactively focused system that is less disputes-focused and encourages business confidence and innovative business practice. • by introducing more effective enforcement mechanisms, to address systemic issues or persistent non-compliance with the law. These reforms should be accompanied by significant outreach to stakeholders, including through educative and engagement measures. As we indicate in this paper, some measures should be given time for familiarity to develop and adaption of policies to be done before legal consequences flow. This can be achieved by some measures coming into effect 12 months after they are enacted. Ultimately, the Commission considers that for our system of anti-discrimination protections to be truly effective, it must shift to focus more on prevention, with measures that will assist duty-holders to prevent discrimination from occurring in the first place. The Commission’s national reform agenda for discrimination law is set out in the next four chapters, and has the following integrated sets of reforms: • Major reform 1: building a preventative culture • Major reform 2: modernising the regulatory framework • Major reform 3: enhancing access to justice • Major reform 4: improving the practical operation of the laws. Above all, reform should be seen as a shared endeavour, in which individuals, businesses, organisations and governments each actively contributes to and is assisted in reaching this outcome. 44 FREE AND EQUAL An Australian Conversation on Human Rights