SafeWork NSW Summit Targets Sexual Harassment Risks at Work

SafeWork NSW is convening a dedicated industry summit to address sexual harassment as a serious workplace health and safety risk, with a particular focus on the health care and social assistance (HCSA), retail and hospitality sectors.

Sexual harassment remains a widespread problem across Australian workplaces, yet many businesses still lack robust systems to identify, assess and control these risks before harm occurs. Effective WHS management systems, supported by clear policies and procedures, are essential to managing psychosocial hazards such as sexual harassment.

In 2025, SafeWork NSW received 278 requests for service and seven formal reports of workplace incidents related to sexual harassment. Almost half (46 per cent) of those service requests came from the HCSA, retail and hospitality sectors, underscoring the heightened exposure faced by these industries.

In these sectors, risk factors can include frequent and often intense customer interaction, a high proportion of young or otherwise vulnerable workers, and complex or unclear reporting pathways. Together, these elements can significantly increase the likelihood of psychosocial harm and make it more difficult for businesses to meet their proactive duties under New South Wales work health and safety laws.

SafeWork NSW acknowledges that each sector faces distinct challenges in preventing workplace sexual harassment. Too often, organisational responses focus solely on individual behaviour, rather than addressing broader systemic drivers such as workplace culture, job design, staffing levels, and environmental factors like isolated work areas or poorly supervised spaces. Integrating sexual harassment controls into WHS management systems and supporting documents such as policies, procedures and, where relevant, Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS) can help ensure a more comprehensive approach. Resources to support this approach are available from specialist WHS providers, for example WHS management systems and policies and procedures.

To drive improvement, SafeWork NSW will host the Partnering for Prevention – Industry Sexual Harassment Summit, bringing together a broad cross-section of stakeholders, including workers, employers, managers, senior leaders and union representatives. The aim is to share evidence, experiences and practical strategies to reduce and prevent workplace sexual harassment.

The two-day summit will be held at Dubbo Memorial Club, Level 1, 178 Brisbane Street, Dubbo. The HCSA-focused session will run from 10am to 4pm on Tuesday 23 June, followed by the retail and hospitality session from 10am to 4pm on Wednesday 24 June. Across both days, participants will explore sector-specific challenges and collaborate to design practical, implementable solutions that can be embedded into existing WHS frameworks, SWMS and workplace policies.

SafeWork NSW is encouraging businesses, health and safety representatives, industry groups and other stakeholders from the HCSA, retail and hospitality sectors to register and take an active role in driving change within their organisations and across their industries.

SafeWork Commissioner Janet Schorer said that, despite one in three workers experiencing workplace sexual harassment, it remains significantly under-reported across all industries. She described the Partnering for Prevention – Industry Sexual Harassment Summit as an important opportunity to engage with the latest research and collaborate on real-world prevention measures.

Commissioner Schorer emphasised that by participating in the summit, attendees will be able to contribute to shaping practical and effective WHS solutions and influence how these measures are implemented across industry to better protect workers from psychosocial harm.