Married at First Sight was issued three SafeWork NSW improvement notices after participants alleged a pattern of unsafe behaviour while filming the show.
According to a report published by Nine papers The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, the allegations made by participants include a bride being filmed in the shower without her knowledge, non-consensual touching by a groom, and production staff physically blocking exits to prevent participants from leaving.
MAFS AU received the SafeWork NSW improvement notices after a number of participants and a member of the public who watched the show, raised formal concerns about the conditions on the show in 2025. The airing of a scene where a groom punched a hole in a wall was the concern raised by the viewer at home.
The Sydney Morning Herald revealed the allegations after it obtained documents under freedom of information laws. This included a situation report provided to SafeWork Minister Sophie Cotsis which described the claims as “potentially serious psychosocial hazards”.
Complaints were also made about a general lack of privacy, including not allowing the cast to remove their microphones while in the bathroom. Participants also reported feeling threatened and intimidated if they tried to leave the production.
As per The Sydney Morning Herald, a Nine Entertainment spokesperson said: “When it comes to the health, wellbeing and safety of participants, our approach is not a ‘set and forget’. We are continually looking at ways we can improve our process and support. At the end of each season we review and make adjustments where needed,” the spokesperson said.
“We’ve co-operated with SafeWork NSW’s inquiries to Nine and will continue to do so as required.”
SafeWork NSW ordered MAFS production to improve reporting of notifiable incidents, systems to manage physical and psychological hazards and health and safety training.
Minister for SafeWork, Sophie Cotsis said the SafeWork NSW commissioner will meet executives at Endemol Shine in coming weeks to discuss the safety of participants on the show.
There is no suggestion the allegations are true, only that they have been made.
In March, Australian social services minister Tanya Plibersek has called out Married at First Sight for platforming coercive control. In a social media post, Plibersek pointed out the controlling behaviour in a clip from the show where one of the male contestants agrees with a suggestion that he wished for his romantic partner to be “obedient” like a dog.
“This is the exact kind of cultural messaging we’re trying to change. Messaging which encourages control and dehumanises women, which is supercharged by algorithms peddling misogyny for profit,” Plibersek said.
“Please don’t expose your kids to this stuff. And let’s continue to call out this behaviour for what it is – the harmful need to exert control over women dressed up as a normal part of a relationship.”
It comes after the UK version of MAFS faced allegations aired by theBBC about sexual violence during filming. The BBC investigation alleged that two women were raped and another sexually assaulted by their “husbands” during production of the show for Channel 4. All episodes have now been removed by Channel 4 as a result of the investigation.