Sexual Harassment Laws In Australia: What Employers Must Do In 2026

Sexual harassment is one of those workplace risks that can escalate quickly if you don’t have the right systems in place.

In 2026, Australian employers are expected to do more than react to problems after they happen. The legal focus has shifted firmly toward prevention-meaning you need practical steps, clear policies, training, and a response process you can actually run under pressure.

If you employ people (even a small team), this isn’t just an “HR issue”. It’s a core legal compliance and safety issue that impacts culture, retention, reputation, and your exposure to claims.

Below, we’ll break down what sexual harassment looks like in practice, which laws apply, and what you should do in 2026 to protect your people and your business.

What Counts As Sexual Harassment At Work In 2026?

Sexual harassment is generally unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that a reasonable person would expect could offend, humiliate, or intimidate someone.

It can be obvious, but it’s often subtle-and it doesn’t have to involve physical contact.

Common Examples In The Workplace

• Unwelcome touching, hugging, or physical closeness
• Comments about someone’s body, appearance, or sex life
• Sexual jokes, innuendo, or “banter” that isn’t welcome
• Asking for sexual favours, or implying work benefits depend on it
• Sharing sexual images, GIFs, memes, or explicit content
• Repeated unwanted invitations or messages
• Staring, leering, or intrusive questions

It’s Not Limited To The Office

In 2026, you should assume your obligations extend beyond a traditional workplace setting, including:

• Work social events (including “after parties”)
• Conferences and training events
• Client sites and offsite meetings
• Work travel and accommodation
• Online channels (Slack/Teams chats, email, DMs, video calls)

“We’re A Small Team” Doesn’t Reduce The Risk

Smaller businesses can actually be more exposed because roles overlap, boundaries can be informal, and there may be no dedicated HR function.

When expectations aren’t written down, it becomes much harder to manage behaviour consistently-and much harder to defend your decisions if a claim arises.

What Laws Apply To Sexual Harassment In Australia?

Sexual harassment sits at the intersection of employment law, discrimination law, and workplace health and safety.

Depending on the situation, multiple legal frameworks may apply at once-so it’s important to approach this as a whole-of-business compliance issue, not a “one policy solves everything” problem.

Anti-Discrimination And Human Rights Laws

Sexual harassment is prohibited under federal law and also under state and territory anti-discrimination laws.

These laws generally cover:

• Harassment by managers, colleagues, contractors, customers, and others in connection with work
• Employer liability (including “vicarious liability”) where a business didn’t take reasonable steps to prevent the conduct
• Victimisation (for example, punishing someone because they raised a complaint)

From a practical standpoint, this means your best defence isn’t “we didn’t know”-it’s having evidence you took reasonable preventative steps before any incident occurred.

Workplace Health And Safety (WHS) Duties

Sexual harassment can be a psychosocial hazard. WHS laws require you to provide a safe working environment, including managing risks to psychological health.

This is closely connected to your general duty of care as an employer.

In 2026, regulators and courts increasingly expect employers to treat harassment risk the same way you would treat physical safety risks: identify it, assess it, put controls in place, and review those controls.

Employment Law And Fair Work Risk

Complaints can quickly turn into employment disputes, including:

• General protections disputes (adverse action)
• Unfair dismissal claims (for example, if the response process is flawed)
• Breach of contract issues (if policies and contracts aren’t aligned with how you act)

This is why your response process needs to be both fair and consistent, and why your employment documentation needs to reflect how you actually run your workplace.

If your business is building or updating its HR foundation, a tailored Workplace Policy set and a centralised Staff Handbook can make a significant difference (not only for prevention, but also for showing “reasonable steps”).

What Employers Must Do: Prevention, Policies And Training

If you’re thinking, “Okay, but what does compliance actually look like day to day?”-this is the right question.

In 2026, employers are expected to actively prevent sexual harassment. That means you should be able to point to real, operational measures, not just intentions.

1. Set Clear Standards (And Put Them In Writing)

You want your team to know what behaviour is acceptable and what crosses the line-without them needing to guess.

Your documents should clearly cover:

• What sexual harassment is (with practical examples)
• That it can happen at work events, online, and outside normal hours if connected to work
• How to raise a complaint (including options if the complaint involves a manager)
• Your non-retaliation stance (no adverse treatment for raising concerns)
• Potential outcomes if misconduct is substantiated

It’s also important these expectations connect back to the individual employment relationship, including the code of conduct and behavioural expectations in your Employment Contract.

2. Train People Early (And Refresh It Regularly)

Training isn’t just a “tick-the-box” activity. Done well, it prevents incidents because it gives people shared language and confidence to act early.

At a minimum, training should cover:

• Definitions and real examples relevant to your industry
• Bystander intervention basics (what to do if you witness something)
• How to raise concerns and what happens next
• Manager responsibilities (how to receive complaints and escalate them correctly)

Refreshers matter, especially after onboarding growth spurts, restructures, or incidents.

3. Build A Workplace Culture That Makes Reporting Possible

Most businesses don’t have “bad policies”-they have a gap between policy and reality.

Culture is what determines whether someone feels safe to speak up early, or whether they stay silent until the issue becomes serious (or public).

Practical ways to support reporting include:

• Offering more than one reporting pathway (not just “tell your manager”)
• Keeping reporting channels confidential where possible
• Ensuring managers know how to respond calmly and neutrally
• Acting promptly on low-level issues (before they escalate)

4. Manage Psychosocial Risk Like Any Other Safety Risk

In 2026, it’s worth treating harassment prevention as an ongoing risk management task.

That might include:

• Identifying hotspots (e.g. late shifts, isolated work, travel, client entertainment)
• Setting boundaries for alcohol at work events
• Reviewing power imbalances (junior staff reporting lines, one-on-one supervision)
• Monitoring digital channels and expectations (without overstepping privacy)

Where you draw the line between monitoring and privacy matters. If you’re collecting or accessing employee information, it’s worth thinking about how your practices align with an Employee Privacy Handbook and your internal processes.

What To Do If A Complaint Happens: A Practical Response Plan

Even with strong prevention measures, complaints can still happen. What matters is how you respond.

A good response process protects the complainant, treats the respondent fairly, and reduces the chance the issue turns into a broader legal dispute.

Step 1: Ensure Immediate Safety And Support

First, check whether anyone is at immediate risk or needs urgent support.

Depending on the situation, this might involve:

• Separating people at work (temporary roster changes, reporting line changes)
• Offering EAP or support resources
• Considering whether interim measures are needed while you assess next steps

Step 2: Receive The Complaint Properly (Without “Investigating On The Spot”)

When someone raises a concern, the first conversation matters. Your goals are to:

• Listen and acknowledge the issue
• Explain the process and possible next steps
• Take notes carefully
• Avoid making promises you can’t keep (for example, “I’ll keep it completely secret”)
• Avoid reaching conclusions before you have information

If the complaint is serious, you’ll often need a structured process. Some matters can be resolved informally, but you should be cautious-particularly where there’s a power imbalance or repeated behaviour.

Step 3: Decide On An Informal Or Formal Pathway

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach, but a formal process is more likely to be appropriate where:

• The allegations are serious (e.g. unwanted touching, coercion, threats)
• There is a seniority/power imbalance
• There is a pattern of behaviour
• There is a risk the issue will continue or escalate
• Either party wants a formal outcome

Step 4: Run A Fair Investigation (And Keep It Confidential)

A fair investigation process usually includes:

• Identifying the allegations clearly
• Giving the respondent an opportunity to respond
• Interviewing relevant witnesses
• Reviewing documents/messages where relevant
• Making findings based on evidence
• Documenting outcomes and reasons

Confidentiality is critical, but it isn’t absolute. You may need to share information on a “need to know” basis to properly investigate and manage safety.

If you’re considering recording interviews or calls as part of evidence gathering, be careful-recording rules differ across Australia and can expose you to separate legal issues. It’s worth being across Recording Laws before doing anything that could create additional risk.

Step 5: Take Action Based On Findings

Outcomes depend on what’s substantiated and what is proportionate. Options can include:

• Training or coaching
• A formal warning
• Role changes or reporting line changes
• Disciplinary action up to termination

If you do take disciplinary action, make sure your process is defensible. A flawed process can create a second dispute even if the underlying complaint was valid.

Step 6: Prevent Retaliation And Monitor The Workplace Afterward

It’s common for “aftershocks” to follow a complaint-gossip, exclusion, subtle retaliation, or resignations.

In 2026, a good response includes follow-up steps such as:

• Checking in with the complainant and relevant team members
• Reinforcing behaviour expectations
• Monitoring for retaliation or victimisation
• Reviewing whether additional controls are needed

Common Risk Areas For Small Businesses (And How To Manage Them)

Sexual harassment risk tends to spike in predictable areas. If you address these proactively, you reduce the likelihood of serious incidents and show you’ve taken reasonable steps.

Work Events, Alcohol, And “After Hours” Culture

Work functions can blur professional boundaries, especially where alcohol is involved.

Controls to consider include:

• Clear behavioural expectations for events
• Limiting alcohol service and providing food/non-alcoholic options
• Making transport options clear
• Ensuring managers understand they are “on duty” from a conduct perspective

Customers And Third Parties

Many small businesses deal with customers face-to-face, and sometimes the inappropriate behaviour comes from outside your team.

You still have duties to protect your staff. That may mean setting boundaries with clients, refusing service, or changing how services are delivered.

If you need to manage customer behaviour in real time, having clear rules around service refusal can be helpful-especially in public-facing industries. (For example, your team may rely on a right to refuse service approach in appropriate situations.)

Remote Work And Digital Communications

Remote work doesn’t eliminate harassment risk-it changes the form it takes.

Common issues include inappropriate DMs, repeated messages outside work hours, sexual comments on video calls, or misuse of workplace chat channels.

Practical controls include:

• Clear standards for messaging, chat channels, and meeting conduct
• Manager training on managing remote team dynamics
• A complaint process that doesn’t rely on “dropping by HR”
• Documentation that addresses online conduct explicitly

Managers And Power Imbalances

Many of the highest-risk matters involve senior staff or owners, because the complainant may fear loss of shifts, reduced hours, poor references, or being pushed out.

To reduce risk, make sure your reporting options include an alternate pathway if the complaint involves a direct manager or the business owner.

Also, ensure your leaders understand that “consent” in a workplace context is complicated by power dynamics. Even “mutual” relationships can create conflicts of interest and risk to the broader team if not managed appropriately.

Key Takeaways

• In 2026, Australian employers are expected to focus on prevention of sexual harassment, not just responding after an incident.
• Sexual harassment risk can arise anywhere work happens, including online channels, client sites, work travel, and social events.
• Compliance involves practical steps: clear written standards, training, multiple complaint pathways, and active psychosocial risk controls.
• A complaint response plan should prioritise safety, confidentiality (where possible), procedural fairness, and careful documentation.
• Small businesses can reduce risk significantly with aligned contracts, policies, and a workplace culture where concerns are raised early.

If you’d like help reviewing your policies, contracts, or complaint process for sexual harassment compliance in 2026, you can reach us at 1800 730 617 or team@sprintlaw.com.au for a free, no-obligations chat.