If you’re a business owner or leader in Queensland, it’s time to ensure your team and your workplace, is fully compliant with the Sex Discrimination and Fair Work Act changes.
As of March 2025, the “positive duty to prevent sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination” in the workplace is not just a best-practice HR principle, it’s an employer obligation, and applies to both large and small business. Pro-active compliance has become a non-negotiable.
What’s the “Positive Duty” and Why Does It Matter in 2025
The positive duty, introduced under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984, requires employers to take proactive and reasonable steps to eliminate:
- Sexual harassment
- Sex-based harassment
- Hostile workplace environments
- Victimisation for raising complaints
From March 2025, the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is now fully resourced to:
- Conduct audits and investigations (even where no complaint has been made)
- Issue compliance notices
- Order corrective action, such as policy reviews or mandatory training
- Even without a formal complaint, your business could be reviewed.
What these Changes Mean for Small Business
If your business employs people, you should be able to prove that you’re actively working to prevent unlawful workplace behaviours, meaning that you should be:
- Training all staff and leaders regularly
- Embedding respectful behaviour into onboarding
- Documenting all preventative actions
- Providing safe and confidential reporting pathways
These steps are no longer the ‘nice to have’ options for your team, they’re now required for compliance in Queensland and across Australia. Whilst every workplace is different, taking proactive action is now an essential part of risk management.
How Chrysallis can help you Meet Your Compliance Obligations
We specialise in simple HR for small businesses and entrepreneurs, and we know how overwhelming changes to employee obligations can feel. That’s why we’ve created practical solutions to minimise risk.
Here’s how we can support you:
1. Respect@Work Team Training
We deliver live or on-demand sessions that cover:
- The legal obligations of employers and employees
- Recognising inappropriate behaviour
- How to foster a respectful workplace culture which includes interactive learning and examples to engage and confirm understanding.
2. Onboarding & Induction Modules
We create customised onboarding tools for new hires, including:
- Onboarding toolkits for anti-harassment and respectful workplace training for new hires
- Company documentation and processes in clear, plain English
- HR platform implementation, keeping it simple, low-cost and efficient for small business
3. Compliance Toolkit
Prefer to manage training in-house? We can provide:
- Ready-to-roll training presentations or videos
- Compliance quiz and certificate templates
- Reporting guides and process flowcharts
- Record-keeping templates for audit readiness
Don’t Wait for a Complaint – Act Now
Measurement of proactive compliance is being able to demonstrate that you have implemented processes before there is a complaint. It’s not just about avoiding fines though, it’s about creating a safe, inclusive culture where your team wants to be, and their active commitment to your business growth.
📅 March 2025 is the time to check your HR systems are up to date.
👉 Book a free 15-minute HR compliance check-in
Let Chrysallis help you build a workplace you’re proud of.
| 📌 | This article provides general HR information and guidance based on recent legislative updates as of March 2025. It does not constitute legal advice. For legal interpretation or tailored advice for your team, situation, and business, we recommend you speak to qualified employment lawyers. |
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