Kate Jenkins has delivered her findings into sexual harassment at Parliament House, along with 28 recommendations for change.
You’ve likely by now heard the shocking figures, shared across all media platforms: that one in three people have experienced sexual harassment while working in Parliament House. More than half (51% of those working in Commonwealth parliamentary workplaces – including parliament house and electoral offices – have experienced at least one incident of bullying, sexual harassment or actual or attempted sexual assault.
And, within hours of this report being released, a Liberal Senator showed exactly why the culture within Parliament needs a colossal shake up.
Accused of making “dog noises” and “growling” at Senator Jacqui Lambie as she was speaking about social housing, David Van was called out by Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young who said: “I don’t think it’s appropriate given what happened today to have growling and dog noises coming from this side of the chamber while a female member in this place is on her feet.”
“If we’re going to change the culture from the top, that means all of us,” she added.
The Senate President said he didn’t hear Van’s interjection, however Senator Penny Wong did hear it, and urged Van (who was unnamed at the time) to “at least fess up”.
Later, Van issued an “unreserved apology but denied making animal noises.
“I was just interjecting with a gruff voice and I think with the mask and everything, in all the noise that was going on, it was that,’’ Van told news.com.au.
“It was in no way an animal noise or meant to be disrespectful to (her) in any sort of gendered way.”
Asked why he was interjecting he replied: “Just Jacqui being Jacqui.”
While Scott Morrison made comment about the incident this morning saying he was “disappointed” in the Senator’s conduct, he did not outline any likely consequence. A case of lip service that we’ve all grown sadly accustomed to.
Right at the moment where respect should have been front and centre on the minds of all parliamentarians, an incident like this shows how ingrained the toxic culture runs in politics. These elected officials take the significant balance of power and should have long been setting a standard that goes beyond what we’ve come to accept across corporate Australia.
It’s time for the Morrison Government to not only emphatically declare “enough” to the mistreatment of women in Parliament House and outside of it, but to actually fast-track Jenkins’ recommendations – recommendations that were requested by the Prime Minister after Brittany Higgins bravely spoke out publicly about an alleged rape by a colleague inside parliament house in 2019.
Now is the time for action.
The recommendations include establishing two new codes of conduct for parliamentarians and their staff. They include establishing new alcohol policies, creating an Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission, developing mandatory best practice training for parliamentarians and staff and focusing on respectful workplace behaviour. They include a review of physical infrastructure to ensure accessibility and inclusions, and specific actions to increase the representation of First Nations people, people with a disability, LGBTIQ+ people and those from CALD backgrounds.
And Jenkins recommends that public reporting needs to be established to declare progress on these actions. These changes would bring parliament into line with standards expected of all workplaces in Australia.
Kate Jenkins’ massive national sexual harassment inquiry that led to the Respect@Work report in March 2020 sat in a drawer for a year before the Morrison Government finally responded saying it accept all recommendations in full, in part or in principle. Later, its legislative response included support of only a handful of the recommendations and lacked the funding to fully support their implementation.
A similar half-hearted response in regard to this report, would be unforgivable.