Positive Duty: Supporting safe, inclusive and respectful workplaces

In December 2023, the Australian Human Rights Commission hosted a panel of experts for an in-depth exploration of the positive duty under the Sex Discrimination Act, the Commission’s compliance and enforcement policy, and the focus on creating long-term and systemic change in the landscape of workplace sexual harassment and other unlawful behaviour.

Key topics

Why positive duty matters

• Discuss the role of positive duty in fostering long-term change and the importance of addressing a spectrum of unlawful behaviours in the workplace.

Overview of positive duty and AHRC resources

• Gain insights into the positive duty framework and discover valuable resources provided by the AHRC to support organisations in creating inclusive and respectful workplaces.

Guest speakers

Dr Anna Cody

Sex Discrimination Commissioner

Dr Cody started as Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission in September 2023. Before this, Dr Cody had a distinguished career as an academic, as a lawyer specialising in discrimination and as a passionate advocate for human rights. Her work over the years has included substantial advocacy to various United Nations human rights committees when they have reviewed Australia’s and other nations’ fulfilment of their human rights obligations.

Most recently she was the Dean of the School of Law and Professor at Western Sydney University for 4.5 years, leading education and research impact within the school to better reflect the diversity of the community and the intersection of law and justice.

Tanya Murphy 

Director Positive Duty, Compliance & Enforcement Team

Tanya Murphy is the Director of the Positive Duty Team with the Australian Human Rights Commission. Tanya has over 30 years’ experience working across different regulatory environments within Federal and State Governments and private industry. Tanya specialises in compliance and enforcement regulatory operations and supportive frameworks to meet regulatory obligations and deliver on regulatory best practice principals.

Ella Kucharova

Ella Kucharova has worked in the Legal team of the Australian Human Rights Commission for over 6 years, and is presently the Legal Director of the Commission’s Positive Duty Team.