Positive Duty Readiness Self-Audit (Sexual Harassment)
Self-audit your organisation against the seven AHRC positive duty standards under section 47C of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth). Rate your maturity in each area to build a readiness scorecard, see your priority gaps, and learn what good looks like.
Since 12 December 2023 the AHRC can enforce the positive duty in s47C of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth). This self-audit rates your organisation against the AHRC's seven standards — Leadership, Culture, Knowledge, Risk management, Support, Reporting and response, and Monitoring, evaluation and transparency — to show your readiness and your gaps.
Before you start: the four guiding principles
The AHRC says four principles run through all seven standards. Keep them in mind as you rate each area.
Consultation
Consult workers and their representatives when designing and reviewing measures.
Gender equality
Address the gendered drivers of sexual harassment and sex discrimination.
Intersectionality
Recognise that overlapping forms of discrimination can compound the risk and impact for some people.
Person-centred and trauma-informed
Put the safety, choice and wellbeing of affected people at the centre of how you respond.
Rate your organisation against the seven standards
For each standard, rate where your organisation is today on a four-level maturity scale: Not started (1), Developing (2), Established (3), Embedded (4). Your scorecard updates as you go.
1. Leadership
1.0 — Not startedSenior leaders understand their obligations and are responsible for putting measures in place to prevent and respond to sexual harassment and sex discrimination.
Do senior leaders understand the positive duty and treat preventing sexual harassment as their responsibility?
Have leaders set clear expectations and committed the time, budget and people needed to meet the duty?
Do leaders visibly model respectful behaviour and hold themselves and others accountable?
2. Culture
1.0 — Not startedThe organisation fosters a culture that is safe, respectful and inclusive, and that values diversity and gender equality.
Is your workplace culture safe, respectful and inclusive in practice, not just on paper?
Do you actively address power imbalances and behaviours that enable harassment?
Can workers raise concerns and call out poor behaviour without fear of negative consequences?
3. Knowledge
1.0 — Not startedThe organisation supports workers, including leaders and managers, to understand their rights and obligations through policies and training.
Do you have a clear policy on sexual harassment and sex discrimination that workers actually know about?
Do all workers, including leaders and managers, receive regular, role-appropriate training?
4. Risk management
1.0 — Not startedThe organisation recognises sexual harassment and sex discrimination as work health and safety risks, and uses a risk-based approach to prevent and respond to them.
Do you proactively identify the risks of sexual harassment and sex discrimination in your workplace?
Do you put control measures in place to eliminate or minimise those risks, rather than waiting for complaints?
Do you review and update your controls as work, roles and risks change?
5. Support
1.0 — Not startedThe organisation makes support available to workers who experience or witness sexual harassment or sex discrimination, regardless of whether they make a report.
Is support available to anyone affected, whether or not they make a formal report?
Is that support easy to find, confidential, and accessible to your diverse workforce?
6. Reporting and response
1.0 — Not startedThe organisation has accessible ways to report, and responds to reports consistently, in a way that is fair to everyone involved.
Are there accessible, trusted ways for people to report sexual harassment and sex discrimination?
Do you respond to reports consistently, fairly and promptly, including to anyone named in a report?
Are reports handled confidentially and free from victimisation of the person who reports?
7. Monitoring, evaluation and transparency
1.0 — Not startedThe organisation collects data to understand and assess sexual harassment and sex discrimination, uses it to continuously improve, and is transparent about its actions.
Do you collect and review data to understand the nature and extent of the problem?
Do you use what you learn to continuously improve your prevention and response measures?
Are you transparent with workers about what you are doing and what you have found?
Your readiness scorecard
Overall readiness: Not started (1.0 of 4)
This is the average of your seven standard scores. A higher score means your prevention and response measures are more deeply embedded — it is a self-audit prompt, not a compliance certification.
1. Leadership
What good looks like: Senior leaders own the positive duty, set public expectations of respectful behaviour, resource prevention work, and are held accountable. Responsibility is not left to HR alone.
2. Culture
What good looks like: A safe, respectful, inclusive culture where unacceptable behaviour is named early, power imbalances are addressed, and people can speak up without fear of victimisation.
3. Knowledge
What good looks like: An accessible policy plus regular, tailored training so every worker — including leaders and managers — understands what the conduct is, their rights, and how to report and respond.
4. Risk management
What good looks like: Sexual harassment is treated as a work health and safety risk: hazards are identified proactively, control measures eliminate or minimise risk so far as is reasonably practicable, and controls are reviewed over time — not a complaints-only response.
5. Support
What good looks like: Clear, confidential and accessible support for anyone who experiences or witnesses the conduct — available regardless of whether a report is made, and suited to a diverse workforce.
6. Reporting and response
What good looks like: Multiple accessible, trusted reporting options; consistent, fair and timely responses that respect everyone involved; confidentiality; and active protection against victimisation.
7. Monitoring, evaluation and transparency
What good looks like: Data is collected and reviewed to understand the problem, used to drive continuous improvement, and the organisation is transparent with its workforce about what it is doing and learning.
Your priority gaps
These standards are your lowest-rated. Start here to strengthen your positive-duty readiness.
- 1. Leadership (Not started, 1.0 of 4) — Senior leaders own the positive duty, set public expectations of respectful behaviour, resource prevention work, and are held accountable. Responsibility is not left to HR alone.
- 2. Culture (Not started, 1.0 of 4) — A safe, respectful, inclusive culture where unacceptable behaviour is named early, power imbalances are addressed, and people can speak up without fear of victimisation.
- 3. Knowledge (Not started, 1.0 of 4) — An accessible policy plus regular, tailored training so every worker — including leaders and managers — understands what the conduct is, their rights, and how to report and respond.
What the law requires
The positive duty in section 47C of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) is legally binding and has been enforceable by the Australian Human Rights Commission since 12 December 2023. These seven standards and the four guiding principles come from the AHRC's Guidelines for Complying with the Positive Duty: the s47C duty itself is the law, while the Guidelines are guidance on how to comply, not a separate legal rule.
- Ratings use a four-level maturity scale: Not started (1), Developing (2), Established (3), Embedded (4). The per-standard score is the average of its sub-questions; the overall score averages all seven standards.
- This is a self-audit against the AHRC's seven standards. The standards and four guiding principles are guidance on how to comply with the positive duty; the legally binding obligation is the s47C duty itself.
- This tool gives general legal information for self-assessment. It is not legal advice, not a compliance certification, and does not replace consultation with workers or professional advice.
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