Under the Act race includes colour, descent, ethnic or national origin, or nationality and may comprise two or more distinct races.
The Australian population comprises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and people from a diverse range of ethnic and national backgrounds, and all are entitled to be treated fairly.
This means no one can harass someone else because of their race. It is also unlawful to harass a person because of a relative’s or associate’s race.
Racial harassment may take many forms including threats, abuse, insults and taunts based on a person’s race or a characteristic belonging to, or generally believed to belong to, a particular race.
Where does the protection apply?
The Act makes it unlawful to racially harass a person in certain areas of public life, including:
- Employment – it is unlawful to racially harass an employee, a co-worker, a potential employee or a potential employer, commission agent or contract worker.
- Education – it is unlawful for an employee of an educational institution to racially harass a student or potential student of that institution.
- Accommodation – it is unlawful for a person who, as principal or agent, has control over accommodation or the letting of that accommodation, to racially harass a person.
Responsibilities
Organisations must ensure they provide an environment that is free from racial harassment, and they must take all reasonable steps to prevent it from happening or they may be held responsible for their employees’ actions.
For the purposes of the Act, a person who causes, instructs, induces, aids, or permits another person to engage in unlawful conduct is taken to have engaged in that conduct themselves.
Making a Complaint
A person who believes they have been harassed because of their race can lodge a complaint with the Commissioner. The onus of proof lies with the person making the complaint.
Complaints must be submitted in writing, but you are not required to use English. You may write your complaint in the language you feel most comfortable using.
The incident or incidents referred to in the complaint must have occurred within the 12 months prior to the date the complaint is lodged.
In some circumstances, the Commissioner may determine that there is good reason — or good cause — to include incidents that occurred more than 12 months before the complaint was submitted.
Examples of Racial Harassment
A courier of Italian descent claimed his employer repeatedly called him by an ethnic slur and would only let him deliver goods to his ‘mates’ who he called by the same ethnic slur.
An employee resigned after arriving at work to find a note written on her desk pad containing racial slurs and
offensive language.
An Asian tenant in a housing complex was racially abused by the owner of the complex when she approached him about doing necessary maintenance on the property.
A student claimed his teacher picked on him because of his ethnic background. He said the teacher ridiculed his lunch and told him if he wanted to be a ‘dirty (nationality) kid’, he was not to come back to the school.
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