Part 6Other unlawful acts

Part 6—Other unlawful acts 86—Victimisation is unlawful (1) It is unlawful for a person to commit an act of victimisation. (2) For the purposes of this section, a person commits an act of victimisation against another person (the victim) if he or she treats the victim unfavourably on the ground that the victim has— (a) brought proceedings under this Act against a person; or (b) given evidence or information in proceedings under this Act; or (c) made allegations that the victim or some other person has been the subject of an act that contravenes this Act; or (d) reasonably asserted the victim's right or the right of some other person to lodge a complaint or take other proceedings under this Act; or (e) otherwise done anything under or by reference to this Act, or on the ground that he or she knows that the victim intends to do any of those things, or suspects that the victim has done, or intends to do, any of those things. (3) Unfavourable treatment on the ground that a person— (a) has made a false allegation; or (b) has not acted in good faith, does not constitute an act of victimisation. 86A—Conversion practices (1) It is unlawful for a person to— (a) provide or deliver a conversion practice to an individual; or (b) arrange for a person to provide or deliver a conversion practice to an individual. (2) The Commissioner's functions under section 11 relating to discrimination apply also to conversion practices. (3) In this section— conversion practice has the same meaning as in the Conversion Practices Prohibition Act 2024. 87—Sexual harassment (1) It is unlawful for a person to subject to sexual harassment— (a) a person with whom he or she works; or (b) a person who is seeking to become a fellow worker, while in attendance at a place that is a workplace of both the persons or in circumstances where the person was, or ought reasonably to have been, aware that the other person was a fellow worker or seeking to become a fellow worker. (2) It is unlawful for a person who works for an educational authority to subject a student of the educational authority, or a person applying to become a student of the educational authority, to sexual harassment while in attendance at a place in connection with the student's education or the applicant's prospective education or in circumstances where the person was, or ought reasonably to have been, aware that the person was a student, or a person applying to become a student, of the educational authority. (3) It is unlawful for a student of or over 16 years of age, while in attendance at a place in connection with his or her education, to subject a person who works at the educational institution at which the student is enrolled or a fellow student to sexual harassment. (6) It is unlawful for a person to subject another to sexual harassment in the course of— (a) offering or supplying goods to that other person; or (b) offering or performing services to which this Act applies for that other person; or (c) offering or providing accommodation to that other person. (6aa) It is unlawful for a person to whom goods, services to which this Act applies or accommodation are being offered, supplied, performed or provided by another person to subject that other person to sexual harassment. (6a) It is unlawful for a judicial officer to subject to sexual harassment a judicial or non-judicial officer, or a member of the staff, of a court of which the judicial officer is a member. (6b) Subsection (6a) does not apply in relation to anything said or done by a judicial officer in court or in chambers in the exercise, or purported exercise, of judicial powers or functions or in the discharge, or purported discharge, of judicial duties (but conduct occurring in such circumstances may be the subject of a complaint under the Judicial Conduct Commissioner Act 2015). (6c) It is unlawful for a member of Parliament to subject to sexual harassment— (a) a member of his or her staff; or (ab) another member of Parliament; or (b) a member of the staff of another member of Parliament; or (c) an officer or member of the staff of the Parliament; or (d) any other person who in the course of employment performs duties at Parliament House. (6d) Subsection (6c) does not apply in relation to anything said or done by a member of Parliament in the course of parliamentary proceedings. (6e) It is unlawful for a member of a council to subject to sexual harassment— (a) an officer or employee of the council; or (b) another member of the council. (6f) It is unlawful for a member of an authority or body empowered to confer an authorisation or qualification that is needed for, or facilitates, the practice of a profession, or the carrying on or engaging in of a trade or occupation to subject an applicant for the conferral of such an authorisation or qualification to sexual harassment. (6g) It is unlawful for a member of the governing body of an association to subject a member of the association, or a person applying to become a member of the association, to sexual harassment. (7) If an employee reports to his or her employer specific circumstances in which the employee was subjected, in the course of his or her employment, to sexual harassment by a person other than a fellow worker, and it is reasonable in all the circumstances to expect that further sexual harassment of the employee by the same person is likely to occur, it is unlawful for the employer to fail to take reasonable steps to prevent the further sexual harassment. (8) It is unlawful for an educational authority administering a secondary education institution to fail to have a written policy against sexual harassment by students that incorporates procedures for resolving complaints and is made readily available to students. (9) For the purposes of this section— (a) a person sexually harasses another (the person harassed) if— (i) the person makes an unwelcome sexual advance, or an unwelcome request for sexual favours, to the person harassed; or (ii) engages in other unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature in relation to the person harassed, in circumstances in which a reasonable person, having regard to all the circumstances, would have anticipated that the person harassed would be offended, humiliated or intimidated; and (b) conduct of a sexual nature includes making a statement of a sexual nature to a person, or in the presence of a person, whether the statement is made orally or in writing; and (c) a person works with another if both carry out duties or perform functions, in whatever capacity and whether for payment or not, in or in relation to the same business or organisation; and (d) a person works for an authority if he or she carries out duties or performs functions, in whatever capacity and whether for payment or not, in or in relation to that authority; and (e) workplace means a place (including a ship, aircraft or vehicle) at which a person works or attends in connection with the person's work. 87A—Sharing accommodation with child (1) It is unlawful for a person— (a) to refuse an application for accommodation; or (b) to defer such an application or accord the applicant a late order of precedence on a list of applicants for that accommodation, on the ground that the applicant intends to share that accommodation with a child. (2) Subsection (1) does not apply— (a) in relation to the provision of accommodation for recreational purposes, if the use of that accommodation is limited, on a genuine and reasonable basis, to persons other than children or persons of a particular age group; or (b) in relation to the provision of accommodation, if the person who provides, or proposes to provide, the accommodation, or a near relative of that person, resides, and intends to continue to reside, in the same household as the person requiring the accommodation. 87B—Student breast feeding infant (1) It is unlawful for an educational authority to discriminate against a student by denying or limiting access to the educational services provided by the authority on the ground that the student is breast feeding an infant or proposes to do so. (2) This section does not apply to discrimination in respect of a particular activity if the student is not, or would not be, able— (a) to perform adequately, and without endangering herself or other persons, the activity; or (b) to respond adequately to situations of emergency that should reasonably be anticipated in connection with the activity. 88—Assistance animals Subject to this Act— (a) it is unlawful to impose a condition or requirement that would result in a person with a disability being separated from his or her assistance animal; and (b) a person who imposes such a condition or requirement is, in addition to civil liability that might be incurred under this Act, guilty of an offence. 88A—Therapeutic animals (1) It is unlawful for a person— (a) to refuse an application for accommodation; or (b) to defer such an application or accord the applicant a late order of precedence on a list of applicants for that accommodation, on the ground that the applicant intends to keep a therapeutic animal at that accommodation. (2) Subsection (1)(a) does not apply if the respondent establishes that in the circumstances of the case the refusal was reasonable. (3) In this section— therapeutic animal means— (a) an animal certified by a medical practitioner as being required to assist a person as a consequence of the person's disability; or (b) an animal of a class prescribed by regulation, but does not include an assistance animal, a dangerous dog within the meaning of the Dog and Cat Management Act 1995 or a dog of a prescribed breed within the meaning of the Dog and Cat Management Act 1995. 89—Notification to be given of proposed discrimination based on actuarial or statistical data If a person, in offering or providing insurance or a superannuation scheme or provident fund, proposes to discriminate against another person on a ground referred to in this Act on the basis of actuarial or statistical data and this Act provides that such discrimination is not unlawful, it is unlawful for the person— (a) to fail to notify the other person of the discrimination and of the fact that he or she may request to be given a summary of the actuarial or statistical data on which it is based; and (b) if such a request is made, to fail to comply with the request. 90—Aiding unlawful acts If a person causes, instructs, induces or aids another to act in contravention of this Act, both are jointly and severally liable to any criminal or civil liability arising under this Act in respect of the contravention. 91—Civil liability of employers and principals (1) Subject to this section, a person is, for the purposes of this Act, vicariously liable for a discriminatory or unlawful act of an agent or employee of the person committed while acting in the course of their agency or employment. (2) In proceedings brought under this Act against a person in respect of an act alleged to have been committed by an agent or employee while acting in the course of their agency or employment, it is a defence to prove that the person took reasonable steps to ensure that the agent or employee would not act in contravention of this Act. (3) Without limiting subsection (2), a defence is established under that subsection in relation to an alleged discriminatory or unlawful act if the person— (a) had in force at the relevant time an appropriate policy for the prevention of such an act; and (b) had taken reasonable steps to implement and enforce the policy including— (i) reasonable steps to make the employees and agents of the person aware of the terms of the policy; and (ii) prompt investigation of any alleged act and taking appropriate action.