Workplace Protection (Personal Violence) Act 2025

This Act may be cited as the Workplace Protection (Personal Violence)

Act 2025.

This Act comes into operation on a day to be fixed by proclamation.

The objects of this Act include—

to prevent and reduce personal violence in workplaces;

and

to facilitate the safety and protection of people who fear or experience personal violence at work by providing a legally enforceable mechanism to prevent personal violence; and

to encourage perpetrators of personal violence to be accountable for their conduct; and

to allow for the resolution of conflict without the need for adjudication.

In this Act—

affected person, in relation to personal violence at a workplace, means any of the following people against whom personal violence has been, or is likely to be, committed:

an employee at the workplace;

the employee's employer;

any other person in the workplace;

Court means the Magistrates Court of South

Australia;

defendant means a person—

in relation to whom an application for a workplace protection order has been made; or

against whom a protection order has been made;

employer means someone who engages an individual—

under a contract of service; or

under a contract for services; or

under an apprenticeship; or

under an approved training contract under the

South Australian Skills

Act 2008; or

to work as a volunteer;

employer association means an employer association that is registered, or taken to be registered, under the

Fair Work (Registered Organisations)

Act 2009;

health and safety representative has the same meaning as in the Work Health and Safety

Act 2012;

interim workplace protection order means an interim workplace protection order under section 8;

intervention order means an intervention order under the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009;

personal violence means any of the following behaviour by a person in relation to another person:

physical violence or abuse;

sexual violence or abuse;

threatening behaviour;

stalking;

harassing, intimidating or offensive behaviour;

damaging property;

Principal Registrar means the Principal

Registrar of the Court;

protected person means a person protected under a workplace protection order or interim workplace protection order;

protection order means—

a workplace protection order; or

an interim workplace protection order;

union means—

an employee organisation that is registered, or taken to be registered, under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 of the Commonwealth;

or

an association of employees or independent contractors, or both, that is registered or recognised as such an association (however described) under a State or Territory industrial law;

workplace—see section 5;

workplace protection order means an order under section 9 restraining a person from personal violence in relation to a workplace.

In this Act, a reference to personal violence by a person in relation to a workplace means—

behaviour of a kind referred to in paragraphs (a) to (e) of the definition of personal violence in subsection (1) engaged in by the person in relation to a person at the workplace; or

behaviour of a kind referred to in paragraph (f) of the definition of personal violence in subsection (1) engaged in by the person in relation to property at the workplace that causes reasonable fear to a person at the workplace.

Subject to this section, a workplace is a place where prescribed work is carried out for a business or undertaking and includes any place where a worker goes, or is likely to be, while undertaking prescribed work.

A reference in this Act to a workplace will be taken to not include a prescribed workplace or a prescribed class of workplace.

In this section—

place includes—

a vehicle, vessel, aircraft or other mobile structure;

and

any waters and any installation on land, on the bed of any waters or floating on any waters;

prescribed work means—

work that requires direct interaction with members of the public (irrespective of whether the interaction is in person or not); or

any other work of a prescribed kind, but does not include work of a kind excluded from this definition by the regulations.

Subject to this section, any of the following persons may apply to the Court for a workplace protection order in relation to a workplace:

an employer at the workplace;

the owner or occupier of the premises in which the workplace is situated;

a representative of an employer association of which an employer at the workplace is a member;

a health and safety representative for the workplace;

a union entitled to represent the industrial interests of workers at the workplace.

When an application for a workplace protection order has been received in the Court, the Court must fix a date for a preliminary conference unless—

an interim workplace protection order is sought; or

the Court is satisfied, on application or its own initiative, that—

holding a preliminary conference would create an unacceptable risk to a person's safety; or

a preliminary conference would be unlikely to achieve its objects.

If the Court does not fix a date for a preliminary conference under subsection (2), the Court must fix a date for the hearing of the application which, if an interim workplace protection order is sought, must be returned before the Court as a matter of priority, as far as is practicable.

The Court must, on fixing a date for a preliminary conference or for the hearing of an application, issue a summons for the appearance of the defendant on the date fixed.

A summons for the appearance of the defendant must be served on the defendant—

personally; or

in some other manner as may be authorised by the Court.

The purpose of a preliminary conference arising out of an application for a workplace protection order is to—

determine whether the proceedings for the order may be settled by consent without the need for a full hearing; and

ensure the application is ready to be heard as soon as practicable.

Subject to subsection (3), a preliminary conference—

is to be held on a date fixed by the Court under section 6(2); and

may be held by the Court at any other time the Court considers appropriate.

The Court must not hold a preliminary conference if the Court considers, on application or on its own initiative, that—

holding a preliminary conference would create an unacceptable risk to a person's safety; or

a preliminary conference would be unlikely to achieve its objects.

If a preliminary conference in relation to an application for a workplace protection order is held and a workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order is not made with the consent of the defendant, the Court must—

fix a date for a further preliminary conference which is as soon as practicable after the day of the first conference; or

fix a date for a hearing to decide the application for the workplace protection order.

If, at any time during the preliminary conference for an application for a workplace protection order, the Court is satisfied that the application is likely to be more effectively resolved by mediation than by a hearing, the Court may refer the parties to mediation and, for that purpose, may adjourn the preliminary conference until a specified date to allow for mediation to happen.

The Court may, at any time during proceedings on an application for a workplace protection order, make an interim workplace protection order before the application for the workplace protection order is determined.

Subject to this Act, the Court may only make an interim workplace protection order if the Court is satisfied that the order is necessary to do either or both of the following before the application for the workplace protection order is determined:

ensure the safety of an affected person from personal violence;

prevent substantial damage to property at a workplace.

An interim workplace protection order will be subject to the conditions fixed under section 11.

An interim workplace protection order ceases to be in force in relation to a defendant—

if the Court makes a workplace protection order in relation to the defendant—when the workplace protection order comes into force against the defendant; or

if the Court declines to make a workplace protection order in relation to the defendant—at the conclusion of the proceedings;

or

if the order ceases to be in force according to its terms;

or

if the Court revokes the order under section 15.

Subject to this Act, the Court may, during proceedings on application for a workplace protection order, make a workplace protection order against the defendant if satisfied that the defendant—

has engaged in personal violence in relation to a workplace;

and

may engage in personal violence in relation to a workplace during the time the order is proposed to operate if the order is not made.

In deciding whether to make a workplace protection order the Court must, subject to this Act, consider the following:

the objects of this Act;

any hardship that may be caused to the defendant or anyone else by the making of the order;

any previous personal violence by the defendant in relation to an affected person or anyone else;

any previous protection order or intervention order made in relation to the defendant;

any previous contravention of a protection order or intervention order by the defendant;

the need to ensure that property is protected from damage.

The Court may also consider anything else the Court considers relevant.

A failure of the Court to comply with subsection (2) in relation to a workplace protection order does not affect the validity of the order.

A workplace protection order may be made in the absence of the defendant if the defendant was required by summons to appear at the hearing of the application and failed to appear in obedience to the summons.

If, in proceedings for a workplace protection order, the defendant consents to the making of a workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order, the Court may make the relevant order against the defendant—

without receiving any further submissions or evidence as to the grounds; and

whether or not any ground for making the order has been made out;

and

whether or not the court has considered any matters required to be taken into account under this Act before the making of the order.

A workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order is subject to the following conditions:

subject to subsection (5), a condition that any firearm, ammunition or part of a firearm (each within the meaning of the

Firearms Act 2015) in the possession of the defendant and any licence or permit held by the defendant authorising possession of a firearm must be surrendered to the

Registrar of Firearms; and

any other conditions the Court considers necessary taking into account the requirements of this section.

In determining the conditions to be included in a workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order, the Court must give paramount consideration to the safety and protection of affected persons.

The Court must ensure the conditions included in a workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order are the least restrictive of the personal rights and liberties of the defendant as possible that still achieve the objects of this Act and give effect to subsection (2).

Without limiting subsection (1)(b), a workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order may do 1 or more of the following:

prohibit the defendant from entering the workplace;

prohibit the defendant from being within a particular distance from the workplace;

prohibit the defendant from doing anything that is personal violence in relation to the workplace;

prohibit the defendant from causing someone else to do anything that is personal violence in relation to the workplace;

state the conditions on which the defendant may—

be in the workplace; or

approach or contact a particular person.

The Court may omit, vary or revoke a condition of a workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order imposed under subsection (1)(a) if satisfied that—

there are cogent reasons to do so; and

the possession of the firearm, ammunition or part of a firearm by the defendant does not represent an undue risk to the safety and protection of an affected person.

A condition in a workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order may have effect for a period stated in the order that is shorter than the period of the order.

A workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order comes into force against a defendant when served on the defendant in accordance with this section.

For the purposes of subsection (1), a workplace protection order or an interim workplace protection order is served on a defendant if—

the defendant is present in the Court when the order is made;

or

the order is served on the defendant personally; or

the order is served on the defendant in some other manner authorised by the Court.