1 week Ago By The Herald's View
Three years after a landmark review of workplace culture found sexual assault, harassment and bullying were common in Parliament House, a new report indicates it remains an unsafe work environment. The finding also leads to the inescapable conclusion that there are some people who have not greatly modified their behaviour since allegations by Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins that she was raped in a ministerial office in 2019 shone a harsh spotlight on Capital Hill. Brittany Higgins outside the Federal Court in November last year.
Credit: Kate Geraghty The first annual report published by the support service established in response to that 2021 review reveals it handled 339 cases – spanning everything from serious sexual crime allegations to bullying and mental health issues – in the nine months from October 2023 to June 2024. Following the Higgins scandal, an independent review of workplace culture at Parliament House, Set the Standard , in November 2021 by former sex discrimination commissioner Kate Jenkins found four out of five people working in Commonwealth parliamentary offices had experienced sexual harassment. One of her key recommendations was to establish an Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission, which would have the power to investigate complaints of misconduct and impose sanctions on politicians.
Her recommendations, including a new code of conduct, were enthusiastically embraced by the parliament. Now the first annual report published by the support service established in response to Jenkins reveals that of the 339 cases, 9 per cent, or 30 of the allegations, were in the category that takes in rape, sexual assault, assault, sexual harassment, stalking or intimidation, while 10 per cent were bullying claims. Eighteen per cent related to family and domestic violence, alcohol, drug, or mental health incidents, and more than a quarter, 27 per cent, were workplace conflicts.
A further 124 cases were classified as unknown or other. While the complaints may refer to incidents many years old, the fact that more sexual assaults have been reported raises serious questions about the current safety of parliamentary workplaces. The annual report further reveals that more than 50 per cent of the complaints were lodged by political staffers, 12 per cent by parliamentary department staff and 17 per cent by MPs or senators.
The watchdog provides both support and review services until the Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission, which will investigate alleged serious breaches of workplace safety, is operating. It is ludicrous that three years have passed and it remains unestablished. The Higgins allegations revealed just how low some federal politicians were prepared to stoop, with both sides weaponising the incident to score points as though the changes that swept workplaces and societies around the world following the #MeToo movement never impinged on Canberra’s corridors of power.
Now we learn a steady stream of allegations of sexual harassment and bullying continued unabated in parliament. The inescapable conclusion is that the men and women charged with legislating to make Australian workplaces safe are themselves working in an unsafe environment. It is a matter of urgency that they act to ensure that they, their staff and ancillary workers in Parliament House are protected.
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