Protections lacking for making bullying complaints in NSW ministerial offices: report

A report that was ordered in the wake of the Brittany Higgins’ sexual assault allegations has made findings described as ‘quite brutal’.

Staffers working for NSW ministers don’t have access to adequate protections to ensure they can safely report workplace sexual harassment and bullying, a new report has found.

Former sex discrimination commissioner and NSW Liberal Minister Pru Goward’s report on complaints procedures for NSW ministerial staff was made public on Wednesday by Premier Gladys Berejiklian.

Ms Berejiklian ordered the review after she reacted with “horror” to the allegations put forward by former commonwealth ministerial staffer Brittany Higgins, who alleges she was raped.

The findings, handed to the Premier last Monday, were published along with a promise by Ms Berejiklian to develop a “new safety net”.

She said the report, which relates to state procedures rather than those in Canberra, was “quite brutal”.

“Having read the report, it’s quite brutal and it says you have to overhaul the whole system, which we’ll be doing,” she told reporters.

In a statement included with the release of the report earlier in the morning, the Premier said: “I want to have a clear conscience that I‘ve done everything I can to make sure that our workplace is supportive, respectful, and fair and that staff are always comfortable in coming forward in a safe setting.”

Pru Goward and Gladys Berejiklian in 2018. Picture: Monique Harmer

Ms Goward’s report found the procedures for handling ministerial staff complaints were woefully lacking.

“This review has concluded that the protections and processes available to ministerial staff are unclear, ineffective and inadequate,” she wrote.

“While all workplaces are unique, ministerial offices have certain features which make them at greater risk of experiencing and poorly managing unacceptable conduct such as bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct.”

Those features include the lack of employment security for staff, who are hired “at the grace and favour of the Minister” and can be fired without recourse to unfair dismissal laws.

She also noted staffers were often young, inexperienced and afraid of causing embarrassment to the office they served if they made complaints.

Ms Goward, a former women’s Minister and Minister the prevention of domestic violence and sexual assault, also wrote that the policies in place put great responsibility on chiefs of staff without properly guiding them on how to handle complaints.

She recommended establishing an independent process to handle complaints, establishing clear guidelines, increasing training for staffers and making sure the Premier received regular reports on policies to ensure a respectful workplace.

But she also acknowledged the limited scope of her review, which was secretly ordered by Ms Berejiklian in February.

The terms of reference set out by the Premier did not task Ms Goward with investigating the extent of workplace bullying and harassment in ministerial offices.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian promised to take action. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

But she noted in other jurisdictions, including in New Zealand, the United Kingdom and South Australia, surveys had shown about a third of respondents had experienced some kind of bullying.

Ms Goward said the situation in NSW was likely similar.

The report also didn’t look into the parliament itself as a workplace, only ministerial offices.

Ms Berejiklian said she would accept the recommendations in the report and it was only the start of a process.

“It’s very important to me that we stress test everything that exists in and around NSW ministerial offices to make sure that we have in place good policies and culture,” Ms Berejiklian said in a statement.

“I am keen to adopt all the recommendations, and there will be an opportunity for consultation in the next phase of this process. If we're serious about making change, we have to do it properly, and this will involve engagement with NSW parliament and any survivors.”

Women’s Safety NSW chief executive Hayley Foster said she was pleased to see the government commit to accepting the recommendations.

“It's pleasing to see the NSW government taking steps to address bullying, harassment, and sexual misconduct in the NSW parliament,” she told NCA NewsWire.

“It is essential that all employers take proactive steps to ensure the safety of its employees at work. Everyone deserves to be safe in their workplace. And the standards within our parliaments, who make the laws under which we all operate, should be exemplar of good practice.

“In our view, the Sex Discrimination Commissioner is best placed to carry out such reviews independently. We would hope there has been some engagement with the commissioner to ensure the recommendations align with best practice and furthermore that the proposed respectful workplace policy will itself be developed under the advice of the commissioner.”