Where does your workplace lie on the roadmap to eliminate racism?
20 January 2025
The new year is often a time of planning and strategizing.
The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has made its goal clear: to eliminate all forms of racism in Australia.
On 26 November 2024, the AHRC released its National Anti-Racism Framework, which includes 63 recommendations that serve as a roadmap for eliminating racism in this country.
Importantly, this roadmap identifies the workplace as a key priority area.
As a result, we can expect changes in workplaces, and we are here to guide you through what to expect by reviewing some of the key recommendations.
The roadmap: recommendations for workplace laws
Recommendations 10 & 11
The roadmap recommends amending the Race Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth) to introduce a positive duty to eliminate race discrimination, which would be monitored and enforced by the AHRC.
Similar to the recently introduced positive duty to prevent sex discrimination, the AHRC suggests moving away from a reactive legal scheme to a proactive one aimed at preventing race discrimination and the harm it causes.
The proposed positive duty would extend beyond the workplace and to include:
- provision of goods and services
- access to places and facilities, and
- provision of land, housing, and other accommodation.
We anticipate that compliance with the positive duty to prevent race discrimination in the workplace would resemble the steps already taken to prevent sex discrimination. These steps include:
- implementing a prevention and response plan
- enforcing a zero-tolerance policy
- appointing strong leaders who foster a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment
- encouraging reporting without fear of retribution, and
- establishing a trauma-informed complaints handling process.
Recommendation 23
The roadmap suggests that work health and safety legislation should be amended to incorporate a cultural safety code of practice. Although codes of practice are not legally binding, they may serve as evidence of the ‘reasonably practicable’ response to workplace hazards, such as racism.
The roadmap: recommendations for workplace practices
Recommendation 18
The roadmap recommends that the responsibility for organisational change should rest with senior leaders, rather than falling solely on First Nations or other negatively racialised employees, who often bear a significant cultural load.
This recommendation specifically highlights the need to acknowledge intersecting forms of discrimination during the process of organisational change.
Recommendations 19, 20
The roadmap recommends that workplaces develop anti-racism strategies that include mandatory training, resources, and education to support these initiatives.
These strategies are described as interim measures until the positive duty is fully implemented. The associated training is to be ongoing and is to be provided by anti-racism organisations and practitioners.
Recommendation 21
The roadmap emphasises the importance of cultural safety for First Nations people. It goes beyond simply recommending cultural competency, inclusion, or diversity. Cultural safety requires a deeper level of cultural awareness and sensitivity that promotes respect and wellbeing.
Recommendation 22
The roadmap also calls for the establishment of workplace policies aimed at the for the hiring, promotion, and retention of First Nations and other negatively racialised employees. Importantly, these policies should be continuously monitored and evaluated to ensure their effectiveness in increasing representation within the workforce.
Key takeaways
The recommendations outlined in the roadmap have not yet been adopted by the government or enacted into any legislation. However, given the extensive consultation and research underpinning each recommendation, they can still serve as a valuable guide for promoting best practices to eliminate racism in the workplace.
Want to know more?
Our experienced employment team can provide you with tailored advice on ensuring your workplace is free from racism. Please do not hesitate to contact us.