All Members of all Australian Parliaments need to be assured their workplaces are safe and respectful and free from bullying and harassment.
Australia’s Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) have this week written to each State and Territory Parliament along with the Federal Parliament urging that steps be taken to ensure workplaces are free from intimidation and bullying for all Parliamentarians and staff.
The Chair of CWP Australia and the Australian Region’s representative on the CWP International Steering Committee, Tasmanian Deputy Opposition Leader Michelle O’Byrne said the need for respectful Parliaments was a significant agenda issue at the recent CWP meeting in the Northern Territory.
"Given the current debate about women’s participation in Parliaments and the environments in which they work, it’s critical current concerns are aired and every Parliament in the country is aware of these serious concerns," Ms O’Byrne said.
"As Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians our job is to encourage women to stand for election to Parliament, but reports that some women MPs and staff may have been bullied and harassed act against that very participation.
"We need to ensure that Australia’s parliaments are places where women feel encouraged and safe to work.
"We recognise that the culture which prevails within political parties is central in achieving this, but we have also written to the presiding officers of Australia’s parliaments to ask what steps they have taken, or could take, to better ensure a safe and respectful workplace for all Members of Parliament."
The CWP, which is formally a part of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, works to encourage women to stand for election to parliaments across the Commonwealth, including removing barriers to their participation, and to ensure that women’s issues are brought to the fore in parliamentary debate and legislation.
