339 complaints were made to the new Federal Parliament HR office between October 2023 and June 2024.
This included 30 complaints related to rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment.
Some complaints were historic, meaning they occurred before the reporting period began in October 2023.
The data comes from the first report of the Parliamentary Workplace Support Service (PWSS), which was established in 2021 following a major review of Parliament’s workplace culture.
Parliament HR
In February 2021, former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins alleged she was raped two years earlier by her colleague, Bruce Lehrmann, at Parliament House.
A month later, the then-Coalition Government asked then-Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins to review Parliament’s workplace culture.
The Jenkins review contained 28 recommendations to improve standards, including setting up a new human resources body for parliamentary staff. In response, the Government created the PWSS.
Complaints
Over the weekend, the PWSS released its first report.
It showed 339 complaints were filed with the PWSS between October 2023 and June 2024.
More than half of the complaints were raised by MPs/Senators’ staffers. Among the other complainants were parliamentary department workers (12%), and MPs and Senators (5%).
Around a quarter identified as “other”. This could include journalists based at Parliament. Swipe to see a breakdown of the types of complaints.
Note
The report noted the sexual assault figure could “appear to be high” because of the way people reported their experiences.
The PWSS said: “People use the expression ‘sexual assault’ to describe a wide range of conduct, from feeling uncomfortable about how a person looked at them to what would be a traditional use of the word rape.“
The report also includes historic complaints from before reporting began in October 2023.
Reaction
In a social media post, Brittany Higgins said the figures were “confronting but sadly not completely surprising for those who have worked in Parliament House.”
Health Minister Mark Butler told media the PWSS report was “deeply concerning”, adding that Parliament’s “culture still needs improvement.”
Nationals Leader David Littleproud told Sky News the number of reports was “disappointing”.
“I think that’s where we’ve got to be able to continue to lift the bar,” he said.
