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KindPath Collective Inc

Sexual Harassment and Bullying Prevention Policy

Version 1.0 | Effective: 29 August 2026 | Review: 29 August 2027 | Owner: Director

1. Purpose

To prevent sexual harassment and bullying at KindPath — of workers by anyone (colleagues, participants, or others), and of participants by anyone — and to respond properly when it happens or nearly happens.

2. Legislative and standards basis

  • Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth), as amended by the Respect@Work reforms, which impose a positive duty on all organisations, regardless of size, to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate sex discrimination, sexual harassment, sex-based harassment, hostile work environments and victimisation as far as possible — a proactive duty, not just a complaints process after the fact.
  • Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) — stop sexual harassment orders and general protections.
  • Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) — psychosocial hazard obligations.
  • NDIS Code of Conduct — obligation to prevent and respond to sexual misconduct.

3. Policy statement

KindPath takes the positive duty seriously: this policy exists to prevent harm before it occurs, not only to process it afterward. This applies in both directions — protecting workers from harassment (including from a participant, whose disability does not remove a worker’s right to a safe workplace) and protecting participants from any worker conduct that crosses a line, however well-intentioned.

On conduct from a participant toward a worker: A participant’s behaviour that makes a worker uncomfortable — including requests or comments of a physical or intimate nature — is taken seriously regardless of whether it’s intentional, whether the participant has capacity to fully appreciate the impact, or whether it was “just” a hug. Where a participant does not have a behaviour support plan or clinician involved (as is currently the case for at least one KindPath participant), the appropriate response is not to ignore the behaviour, but to: name the boundary clearly and kindly with the participant, adjust the support arrangement if needed (for example, limiting a specific worker’s role, or ensuring the worker is not the only person the participant relies on for that kind of connection), begin structured data collection (ABC — Antecedent, Behaviour, Consequence — see the Restrictive Practices Policy) so any pattern is caught early and can inform a future referral to a behaviour support practitioner if needed, and support the worker involved without making them responsible for managing the participant’s behaviour on their own.

On worker conduct toward a participant: any sexual conduct, comment, or behaviour by a worker that could be perceived as inappropriate is treated as a serious safeguarding matter under the Safeguarding Policy, with the presumption of participant safety over worker convenience or intention.

4. What this looks like in practice for a family-member or dual-relationship worker

  • A worker who is also a family member is not expected to “just know” where professional boundaries sit differently from personal ones — this is discussed explicitly, in advance where possible, and revisited whenever something ambiguous happens (as already occurred, and was handled by naming it and adjusting practice — that is the model to continue, not a one-off correction).
  • A worker is never expected to manage discomfort alone, silently, out of not wanting to make a situation awkward with someone they know personally. Raising it is the expected, supported response, not an overreaction.

5. Procedure for a report or observed incident

  1. Worker or participant safety addressed immediately if at risk.
  2. Reported to the Director (or, if the Director is involved, to an independent person — see Conflict of Interest Policy).
  3. Documented factually in the Incident Register.
  4. Assessed: is this a immediate risk requiring the arrangement to pause or change now, or a boundary issue to be addressed through a direct, respectful conversation and closer support/data collection.
  5. Any decision affecting the participant’s support arrangement is made with the participant’s dignity and rights intact — this is corrective and protective, not punitive toward the participant.
  6. Any decision affecting a worker’s safety is made with the worker’s wellbeing genuinely prioritised, including offering a change in role or support arrangement if they want it.

6. Roles and responsibilities

  • Director: primary responder; ensures the positive duty is met through prevention (induction, clear boundary-setting from day one with every participant and worker), not just reactive process.
  • Workers: report early; are supported, not blamed, for raising discomfort.

7. Related documents

Safeguarding Policy · WHS Policy and Procedures · Restrictive Practices Policy · Staff and Volunteer Code of Conduct

8. Review

Annually, and after any reported incident.