National Anti-Racism Framework Released by Australian Human Rights Commission

Aligned to this, ClubsNSW encourages its members to engage with the new National Anti-Racism Framework which was released late last year by the Australian Human Rights Commission. The Framework aims to guide a whole-of-society approach to eradicating racism in Australia. You can find the entire Framework here.

Overview

Specifically, with respect to Australian workplaces, the Commission has made some key recommendations to the Australian Government and employers which form part of the Framework. The recommendations are made with the Commission acknowledging the severe adverse impacts of racism, including worse health outcomes and consistent roadblocks in employment. 

In summary, the recommendations include:

• internal workplace anti-racism strategies for all employers
• mandatory cultural safety and anti-racism training for all workers including parliamentarians
• national standards for reporting racism in workplaces
• strategies for recruiting and retaining staff from First Nations and other negatively racialised backgrounds, particularly in leadership and senior roles.

Interestingly, the Australian Human Rights Commission, through this report, has also called for amendments to the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth) to include a positive duty to eliminate racial discrimination. This could look quite similar to the positive duty to eliminate sexual harassment, which if implemented, would require substantial compliance efforts. 

Any questions? 

Should member clubs have any questions about the existing obligations to create a workplace free from racial discrimination, bullying or harassment, they are encouraged to call ClubASSIST on 1300 730 001 and ask to speak with a member of the Workplace Relations team.