Discrimination, Bullying and Harassment

Australian Human Rights Commission

The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is an independent statutory organisation, established by an act of Federal Parliament. We protect and promote human rights in Australia and internationally. You can make a complaint to the AHRC no matter where you live in Australia and it doesn’t cost anything to make a complaint.

National Centre Against Bullying

The National Centre Against Bullying (NCAB) is a peak body working to advise and inform the Australian community on the issue of childhood bullying and the creation of safe schools and communities, including the issue of cyber safety.

Cyberbullying is a form of bullying online. It can occur in many ways:

• abusive texts and emails;
• messages, images or videos including image-based abuse (sometimes incorrectly referred to as 'revenge porn'), where a person distributes or posts false, humiliating or intimate/sexualised videos or photos of you without your consent;
• imitating others online by using an alias;
• humiliating, harassing or threatening people and/or their family or friends online;
• hacking and misusing another person's email accounts;
• nasty online gossip and chat.

For more information on how to identify cyber abuse, cyberbullying and image-based abuse, check out the eSafety Commissioner's webpage.

• take many forms, including jokes, teasing, nicknames, emails, pictures, text messages, social isolation or ignoring people, or unfair work practices;
• involve many different forms of unreasonable behaviour, which can be obvious (overt) or hidden (covert);
• be intentional or unintentional.

Sometimes people do not realise that their behaviour can be harmful to others. This does not make it okay.

Seek advice and support

If you are experiencing bullying, tell trusted people in your support network that you’re being bullied and how this is impacting you. This can include friends, family, neighbours, work mates, peers or staff at university. Staying silent can make a person who is being targeted by bullying to feel dis-empowered. 

• Seek professional support and advice from university counselling or externally
• Stay positive. Focus on the things you do well and the people who support and care about you
• Keep doing the things you enjoy
• Report the behaviour – to Campus Security or a university staff member if on campus
• If you fear for your safety or feel threatened by the person(s) bullying you, call police on 000

• Documenting is really important if you choose to make a formal complaint now or down the track. Make a note of all instances of bullying e.g. date, time, place, names and any witnesses present during an incident
• When reporting behaviours to the university or police, describe the behaviour that is upsetting you as well as how its affecting you e.g. not turning up to lectures or tutorials or campus or taking time off study
• Keep evidence of bullying behaviours where possible e.g. copies of messages, photos or online conversations

• Report bullying behaviours occurring on campus to Security and follow the  Personal Safety guidelines

• If you are experiencing bullying in class or elsewhere on campus, you may also report the behaviour for further investigation by following the Student Complaints Resolution policy and process

If you witness someone experiencing bullying, you can help by choosing to be an active bystander if it is safe to do so. Examples are:

• Interrupting the behaviour and distracting from the situation when it is safe to do so (e.g. if you know the person being targeted, engaging them in a conversation about class work or asking them how they are)
• Talking privately to the person being targeted and asking if they are ok
• Talking privately to the personal engaging in the bullying behaviours and letting them know why their behaviour is of concern to you
• Bringing the behaviour to the attention of others and considering how to intervene as a group
• Getting help from someone with authority (e.g. teaching staff or campus security if on campus)
• Talking with a University counsellor about how you are feeling about what you witnessed and about your options. To book an appointment by phone:

Metropolitan campuses/UniSA Online students
1300 301 703
Mount Gambier campus
(08) 8723 1999
Whyalla campus
(08) 8645 8233

• Not becoming violent yourself
• Calling for help (use campus emergency phones available on every campus or 1800 500 911 (24x7 free call)

Direct Discrimination - when someone is treated less favourably than another person or group in a similar situation because of personal characteristics protected by law.

Indirect Discrimination - when an unreasonable requirement, condition or practice is imposed that has, or is likely to have, the effect of disadvantaging people with a personal characteristic protected by law.

Protected Personal Characteristics include:

• a disability, disease or injury, including work-related injury;
• parental status or status as a carer;
• race, colour, descent, national origin, or ethnic background;
• age, whether young or old;
• sex;
• sexual orientation, intersex status or gender identity, including gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual, transgender, queer and heterosexual;
• industrial activity, including being a member of an industrial organisation such as a trade union or taking part in industrial activity, or deciding not to join a union;
• religion;
• pregnancy and breastfeeding;
• marital status, whether married, divorced, unmarried or in a de facto relationship or same sex relationship;
• political opinion;
• social origin;
• medical record;
• mental health concern;
• an association with someone who has, or is assumed to have, one of these characteristics e.g. being the parent of a child with a disability.

It is also against the law to treat someone unfavourably because you assume they have a personal characteristic or may have it at some time in the future.