The national anti-bullying laws only apply to certain workers in Australia. To make an application for an order to stop workplace bullying, a person must:
A worker includes:
Workers are only covered by the national anti-bullying laws if they work in a 'constitutionally covered business'. This includes a business or undertaking conducted by:
The Fair Work Commission can only make an order if there is a risk that the worker will continue to be bullied at work by the particular individual or group. Accordingly, orders cannot be made where the worker is no longer engaged at the workplace where they allege the bullying occurred and/or there is no risk of the bullying conduct continuing.
If you believe that you have been unfairly dismissed, or if you think you were dismissed for a discriminatory reason, you can find out more about the unfair dismissal and general protections provisions in the Fair Work Act 2009.
Workers who are not covered by the national anti-bullying laws may include workers in businesses that are:
Members of the Defence force are not covered by these laws.
The Commission may dismiss an application if it considers that the application might involve matters that relate to Australia's defence or national security.
The Commission can only make an order if there is a risk that the worker will continue to be bullied at work by the particular individual or group. Accordingly, orders cannot be made where the worker is no longer engaged in connection with the workplace where they alleged the bullying conduct occurred or for some other reason is no longer exposed to bullying by the individual or group at work.
Before you can make an application for an order to stop bullying at work, you should check to see whether or not you’re eligible.
Go to the Am I eligible? quiz to find out if you are eligible to make an application.