Disrupting Workplace Sexual Harassment - A 16 Days against Gender-Based Violence Panel Discussion

In time for the global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, the Workplace Respect Project will host a group of diverse subject matter experts for a panel discussion on disrupting sexual harassment in the workplace. 

This hour-long discussion will explore a range of topics with an underlying focus on prevention, systems reform, and how all of us can become disruptors; challenging sexual harassment as an insidious yet pervasive form of gender-based violence across Australian workplaces. After the discussion, we will break for coffee and a small morning tea provided by Ground and Co Cafe. 

Event information

When: 10:00AM – 11:30AM, Monday November 25

Where: Great Southern Room, State Library of Western Australia, 25 Francis St, Perth WA. 

Panelists:

Alex Killick

Alex Killick is an advocate for survivors of workplace sexual harassment, who draws on her own lived experience of harassment to dismantle systemic barriers as a member of Circle Green’s Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP).

She is finalising her dual bachelor’s degrees, majoring in Psychology, Human Resources Management and Industrial Relations at Curtin University, and is currently employed in the Employment Relations department at MercyCare. Recently, Alex was also diagnosed with ADHD, which provides her with a unique perspective on the effects of sexual harassment for neurodivergent folk.

Alex is particularly passionate about social media’s role in work-related interactions, the nuances of trauma, and educating young workers how to identify and respond to sexual harassment.

Pokua Asomani

Pokua Asomani is a vocational education and training (VET) specialist with more than 20 years’ experience in the sector, most of which were in quality assurance and risk management roles.

Her expertise is in the following areas:

• Developing and accrediting nationally recognised qualifications

• Interpreting and applying standards, legislation, and policy frameworks

• Facilitating training and community workshops

• Developing strategic relationships with stakeholders

Pokua left the WA Public Sector at the beginning of 2022 and became a doting grandmother in December of that year.

In semi-retirement, she has found a new family at Multicultural Services Centre WA, where she is the Quality and Compliance manager.

Madeleine Brown

Madeleine is a workplace lawyer with a varied professional background. Prior to joining the community legal sector, she worked in private practice and at a high-profile union of employers.

She is experienced across a broad spectrum of workplace law matters including dismissal-based claims, contractual and minimum entitlements and restraints of trade. In her current role as a Senior Lawyer at Circle Green Community Legal, she manages the casework team, who provide representation and ongoing assistance to vulnerable workers in Western Australia with a particular focus on sexual harassment and discrimination matters.

Heidi Guldbaek

Heidi Guldbaek is the Project Manager of Circle Green’s Workplace Respect Project, which seeks to address workplace sexual harassment by working across the spectrum of prevention, as well as providing confidential legal advice to people who’ve been targeted by workplace sexual harassment.

With over 15 years of experience in the anti-violence against women sector, Heidi has led various state and national initiatives in both government and non-government contexts, focusing on both response and prevention efforts. Her educational background includes qualifications in Behavioural Science and Human Rights.

Heidi is passionate about collaborative work, ensuring that the voices of those affected by violence are central to the development of policies, programs, and legislation aimed at dismantling structural oppression and injustice.

Session Chair:

Elisha Butt

Elisha is the Principal Lawyer of the Workplace stream at Circle Green.  She takes a compassionate and trauma-informed approach to helping WA workers navigate a wide range of workplace issues including exploitation, wage theft, dismissal, bullying, discrimination, and sexual harassment. Elisha holds a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Western Australia, and is a nationally accredited mediator.

With a strong commitment to access to justice and social justice, Elisha takes pride in providing high quality, accessible, and pragmatic legal assistance to community members who may otherwise fall through the gaps in our legal system. She has been providing workplace law assistance to WA workers since 2014 and has secured several exceptional outcomes as an advocate for workers facing vulnerability or disadvantage. Elisha  is passionate about empowering individuals to resolve disputes on their own terms through mediation.