A business owner and manager has been ordered to pay a young worker $90,000 in the first published decision imposing a civil penalty on an individual for workplace sexual harassment under the Commonwealth Fair Work Act — a landmark ruling that sets a national precedent for how harassment claims will be pursued and decided across Australia.

The case involved a young worker who had been systematically underpaid, denied pay slips, and subjected to sexual harassment by her manager, who was also the sole director of the small business. Reports indicate the harassment involved physical assault, followed by an offer of money to buy the worker’s silence. The worker was supported throughout the proceedings by the Women’s Legal Centre ACT, pro bono barristers, and a financial expert who calculated the extent of the underpayment.

The decision was handed down under reforms to the Fair Work Act that came into effect in March 2023, which explicitly prohibited sexual harassment in connection with work and created new civil penalty avenues for affected workers, unions, and the Fair Work Ombudsman. It is the first time a published decision has resulted in a civil penalty against an individual under this framework.

The presiding judge cited the worker’s evidence verbatim in the judgment — widely interpreted as an unequivocal statement that her account was believed in full. The Women’s Legal Centre ACT described the outcome as a landmark decision that sends a clear message about accountability.

For employers, the case is a clear signal that the 2023 Respect at Work reforms are now operational and enforceable at an individual level — not just against corporations. Small businesses are equally exposed. PCBUs across all industries are reminded of their positive duty to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate sexual harassment from the workplace, and should ensure harassment policies, training, and reporting pathways are up to date and actively enforced.

Safe Work Australia data indicates one in three Australian workers has experienced sexual harassment in the workplace in the five years to 2022. Forty per cent of affected workers are women, with risk elevated for workers under 29, workers with a disability, and those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.