Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I move amendments (1) to (8) as circulated in my name together:

(1) Schedule 1, item 426, page 113 (lines 12 and 13), omit the definition of intersex status.

(2) Schedule 1, item 426, page 113 (before line 14), before the definition of special measure to achieve equality, insert:

sex characteristics means a person's physical features and development relating to sex, and includes:

(a) the person's genitalia and other sexual and reproductive parts of the person's anatomy; and

(b) the person's chromosomes and genes; and

(c) the person's hormones and secondary physical features emerging as a result of puberty.

(3) Schedule 1, item 427, page 113 (line 17), omit "intersex status,", substitute "sex characteristics,".

(4) Schedule 1, item 429, page 114 (line 3), omit "intersex status,", substitute "sex characteristics,".

(5) Schedule 1, item 432, page 115 (line 3), omit "intersex status,", substitute "sex characteristics,".

(6) Schedule 1, item 433, page 115 (line 6), omit "intersex status,", substitute "sex characteristics,".

(7) Schedule 1, item 436, page 115 (line 23), omit "intersex status,", substitute "sex characteristics,".

(8) Schedule 1, item 437, page 116 (line 23), omit "intersex status", substitute "sex characteristics".

These amendments quite simply replace the words 'intersex status' with 'sex characteristics' in the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Bill 2022. They have been drafted in consultation with the peak organisation representing intersex people, that's the Intersex Human Rights Australia organisation, and LGBTQI+ advocates Rodney Croome AM and Alistair Lawrie. The terminology is also endorsed by the intersex community through the Darlington Statement and the 'Yogyakarta Principles plus 10.' This is a very important amendment because not everyone who has variations of their sex characteristics may identify as intersex. But they still deserve protection from discrimination, not least because the experiences of people with variations of sex characteristics can be harrowing.

Indeed, according to Intersex Human Rights Australia, a 2015 Australian survey of 272 people born with atypical sex characteristics found many individual and systemic examples of discrimination. For example: '19 per cent of people born with atypical sex characteristics fail to complete secondary school, due to reasons including the impact of medical interventions during puberty, stigmatisation and bullying on grounds of sex characteristics and unaddressed issues associated with developmental delays.'

Good discrimination law focuses on people's attributes rather than just lumping people into one group. For example, our antidiscrimination laws protect people of all sexual orientations not just people who identify as gay. In the same way, this amendment would protect all people with variations of their sex characteristics not just people who identify as intersex. Very relevant is that other Australian jurisdictions already recognise this matter and have acted on it, with Victoria, the ACT and Tasmania now using the term 'sex characteristics'. The Northern Territory has also adopted the wording in its Anti-Discrimination Amendment Bill 2022 currently before the Northern Territory parliament. Furthermore, the Law Reform Commission of Western Australia and Queensland Human Rights Commission have recommended 'sex characteristics' as the preferred term.

I acknowledge that supporting this amendment could be regarded as problematic by the government because the federal Sex Discrimination Act has included the term 'intersex status' since 2013. I also acknowledge that during debate on a Greens' amendment to the Sex Discrimination and Fair Work (Respect at Work) Amendment Bill 2021, that would have replaced the words 'intersex status' with 'sex characteristics', Labor indicated it would not support the amendment because it would cause inconsistency with other legislation such as the Sex Discrimination Act. But two wrongs don't make a right. So the government should either support this amendment and then move quickly to also amend the Sex Discrimination Act and any other relevant antidiscrimination legislation or, at least, make a rock-solid commitment today to soon amend both the secure jobs, better pay bill and the Sex Discrimination Act and any other relevant antidiscrimination legislation.

The substance of this straightforward amendment is inherently important and very meaningful to many people. It's been advocated for many years, certainly as far back as the creation of the Sex Discrimination Act in 2013. So, please, I say to the government: let's do this and do it today.

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