Understanding workplace sexual harassment

WSH is a silent epidemic – not only in Australia, but across the globe. In May 2021, the Commonwealth announced it would be providing $5.514 million in funding to Western Australia (WA) over a four-year period (2021-22 to 2024-25) for the provision of legal assistance services for people who have experienced WSH or discrimination. Circle Green Community Legal (Circle Green) is the lead agency delivering the Workplace Sexual Harassment and Discrimination Legal Services Project (referred to as “the Workplace Respect Project”) in Western Australia. The Workplace Respect Project has the following seven objectives:
1. Identifying current or emerging legal need
2. Developing responsive intake pathways
3. Delivering legal advice and legal assistance services
4. Delivering community legal education
5. Developing pro bono resources
6. Capacity building within the legal assistance sector
7. Undertaking project outcomes measurement, impact, and evaluation

This report aims to address Objective 1, where the purpose is to identify and understand the prevalence, nature, and occurrence of WSH and discrimination in WA, but also, Australia more broadly. A synthesis of the available evidence will allow us to extrapolate current, or emerging, legal needs relative to WSH, and identify approaches that could assist to prioritise the provision of legal assistance services to people targeted by WSH and achieve the greatest social impact. Ultimately, this report sought to build a solid evidence base for identifying legal need (based on existing, available evidence) and how legal assistance services and other relevant organisations can position themselves to better care and respond to people who have experienced WSH. The latter parts of this report draw on the lived experiences of women in WA to better inform the identification of legal need and the role of legal assistance services.