Fair Work Commission

Who is covered by the national anti-bullying laws?

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:

• be covered by the national anti-bullying laws, and
• meet the definition of a worker.

A worker includes:

• an employee
• a contractor or subcontractor
• an employee of a contractor or subcontractor
• an employee of a labour hire company who has been assigned to work in a particular business or organisation
• an outworker
• an apprentice or trainee
• a student gaining work experience
• a volunteer.

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:

• a business that is a constitutional corporation – for example, a proprietary limited company (this includes foreign corporations and trading or financial corporations formed within the limits of the Commonwealth)
• the Commonwealth
• a Commonwealth authority
• a body corporate incorporated in a territory
• a business or organisation conducted principally in a territory or Commonwealth place.

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.

Who is not covered by the national anti-bullying laws?

Workers who are not covered by the national anti-bullying laws may include workers in businesses that are:

• sole traders or partnerships
• some state government departments and (non-corporate) state public sector agencies
• some local governments, provided they are not trading or financial corporations
• corporations without significant trading or financial activities.

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.

Am I eligible to apply?

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.