Brittany Higgins slams QLD government for pausing workplace sexual harassment reform
Ms Higgins posted a scathing statement to X and Instagram where she criticised the Crisafulli government for pausing workplace harassment reforms that were designed to strengthen Queensland's Anti-Discrimination Act.
'The Queensland State Government has indefinitely paused the 'positive duty' workplace sexual harassment reforms that were set to come into effect this year,' she wrote.
'There has been extensive community consultation over years. By pausing this legislation indifferently, without any clear explanation, just further proves the government isn't taking the concerns of the women in their state seriously.
'This shouldn't be a partisan issue. Every day the Crisafulli Government delays taking action, more Queenslanders face risk at work.'
The positive duty reforms would mean that businesses, organisations and government agencies have a legal requirement to prevent harmful conduct rather than respond to problems after they occur.
Positive duty is a feature of anti-discrimination law in Victoria, the ACT, the Northern Territory and at federal level.
The Respect at Work reforms were due to begin in Queensland on July 1 after they were passed by the former Labor government in September 2024.
However, LNP Attorney-General Deb Frecklington announced a pause to the laws on March 14, saying the planned start date did not allow sufficient time for consultation.
The laws were a key recommendation of the Queensland Human Rights Commission's review into the Anti-Discrimination Act 1991, tabled in parliament in September 2022.
According to the review led by human rights commissioner Scott McDougall, positive duty is 'an obligation on a person or organisation to take active steps to prevent discrimination and sexual harassment before it happens'.
'These steps are a proactive means to ensure that organisations are working to protect people from discrimination,' he said.
Ms Higgins' public statement follows a highly publicised defamation trial where Justice Michael Lee found, on the balance of probabilities, that her colleague Bruce Lehrmann sexually assaulted her inside Parliament House on the morning of March 23, 2019.
Lehrmann maintains his innocence and is appealing the decision.
On Tuesday morning, Labor MP Shannon Fentiman slammed the Queensland government for shelving the reforms, telling 4BC's Peter Fegan 'I think this new government does have a women's problem'.
'They're not interested in delivering for women, but of course, it's not just women,' Ms Fentiman said.
'As I said, a whole lot of blokes out there also experience sexual harassment, and it's just not good enough.
'There's no excuse.'
Originally published as Brittany Higgins slams QLD government for pausing workplace sexual harassment reform
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sky News AU
28 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
Albanese government roasted for ‘socialist left' taking over Israel-Gaza rhetoric since elected
Radio 2CC host Stephen Cenatiempo has slammed the Labor government for the 'ideological bent' they have on the Israel-Hamas war. 'It's been pretty clear that they've been anti-Israel since they were elected,' Mr Cenatiempo told Sky News host Chris Kenny. 'It's been a dramatic shift in the Labor Party since the socialist left took over. 'When the Labor Party was run by the sensible right, you would never have had this kind of rhetoric.'
7NEWS
28 minutes ago
- 7NEWS
Daughter speaks out after teenage boy pleads guilty to Vyleen White murder in Queensland
The daughter of a woman who was stabbed to death has spoken out as the family wait to see if the teen responsible will be sentenced under Queensland 's new Adult Crime Adult Time laws. Vyleen White, 70, was killed by a 16-year-old boy outside Redbank Plains Town Square shopping centre, west of Brisbane, in February 2024. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Teen pleads guilty to murder. The teen, who is turning 18 later this year, was charged with murder and unlawful use of a motor vehicle plus three counts of stealing. On Tuesday he pleaded guilty to all the charges in Brisbane Supreme Court. Queensland's Liberal National government introduced new Adult Crime Adult Time laws after winning the 2024 election. Under the new laws, juveniles can face adult sentences for more than 30 offences including attempted murder, rape, attempted rape, torture and aggravated attempted robbery. However, the law does not apply in this case because it only came into effect in December 2024 and does not apply retrospectively. The teenager faces a maximum of 10 years behind bars unless the court finds the offence to be particularly heinous. White's daughter, Cindy Micallef, said she hoped the judge would determine the crime to be serious enough to fall under the new law. 'This is open to interpretation by the judge so, let's just hope he finds this situation particularly heinous, because I know the rest of Queensland does,' she told Sunrise. 'Our family certainly do.' Micallef and her family have been vocal about reforming the state's youth crime system in the wake of their matriarch's death. She said a lot of young repeat offenders remain in the community and are continuing to 'raise hell'. 'You could be at the shops and there will be a group of them giving someone a hiding and they just keep doing this sort of stuff,' Micallef said. 'They get put away for a couple of weeks but then they're back out again.' Queensland Premier David Crisafulli said Micallef was inspiring and the new laws were driven by her family's tragedy. He said he would continue to strengthen youth justice laws and make changes as required. 'I spoke to (Micallef) last night, I spoke to her dad Victor this morning, they're two of the greatest Queenslanders you'll ever meet,' he told Sunrise. 'We're investing in early intervention for the first time in a long time and rehabilitation to try to turn kids around. 'Our mission is to make sure that we turn around that next cohort and make sure there are consequences for those who do continue to those kinds of crimes.' White's family members who were in court did not audibly react to the guilty pleas on Tuesday. 'Every aspect of our lives has changed, every aspect, and it's something you can't possibly imagine,' White's daughter Julie said. Prosecutor Chris Cook sought a pre-sentence report by November 3 and a November 12 sentencing. The teenager will remain in custody until his next court appearances.
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
Labor's unrealised capital gains is a ‘terrible tax'
Liberal Senator Jane Hume slams Labor's unrealised capital gains tax. Ms Hume told Sky News Australia it is a 'terrible tax'. 'But clearly, this is stuff that they didn't want to talk about before the election, that they're going to have to face after.'
