Quick Summary
Quick Summary
- A workplace bullying complaint form should capture the alleged conduct, dates, witnesses, impact and immediate safety concerns without asking the complainant to prove the legal conclusion.
- A complaint form is an intake and record-keeping tool, not a substitute for a prompt, impartial investigation.
- Employers should acknowledge the complaint, assess risks, preserve evidence and give all relevant people a fair opportunity to respond.
- The Fair Work Commission can make orders to stop workplace bullying, while work health and safety and discrimination obligations may also apply.
Quick answer: what should an employer do with a bullying complaint form?
The key legal framework is the Fair Work Act 2009. Section 789FD focuses on repeated unreasonable behaviour that creates a risk to health and safety, while reasonable management action carried out reasonably is excluded. The Fair Work Commission’s bullying guidance explains that workers may apply for orders to stop bullying. Separate work health and safety, discrimination, harassment and general protections issues may also arise.
Why use a workplace bullying complaint form template?
For employers, the form creates an auditable starting point. It helps identify who needs to be spoken to, what records should be preserved and whether an interim measure is needed. It also reduces the risk of an investigation being shaped by assumptions before the relevant people have been heard.
The form should be easy to access and should not be the only reporting channel. If the complaint concerns the direct manager, the employer must provide a safe alternative such as HR, a senior manager, an owner or an external contact. Your general employment documents should support that escalation pathway.
What should an employer include in the form?
1. Basic details and preferred contact method
Record the complainant’s name, role, work location, preferred contact details and whether they need an interpreter, support person or another reasonable adjustment. Ask whether the complaint is made about the complainant’s own experience or on behalf of somebody else. Keep access to this information limited.
2. Specific incidents, not just conclusions
Ask what happened, who was present, where it happened and when it occurred. Provide space for multiple incidents because repeated conduct is relevant to the statutory test. Useful prompts include: “What words or actions were used?”, “What instruction or decision was involved?”, “How did the conduct differ from ordinary management action?” and “Has this happened before?”
3. Witnesses and supporting material
Ask for names of witnesses and the location of relevant records, including emails, text messages, rosters, meeting notes, performance documents, diary entries, CCTV or chat messages. Do not instruct a complainant to secretly record conversations or access another person’s private account. Instead, preserve material lawfully and ask an investigator to determine what is relevant.
4. Impact and immediate risk
5. Outcome sought and prior steps
Ask what outcome the complainant is seeking and whether they have already raised the issue. The requested outcome is useful context, but it does not determine the result. An employer may need to take action that is different from what the complainant asks for, particularly where a broader safety or misconduct issue is identified.
⚠️ Do not treat the form as proof of bullying
The form records an allegation. Employers still need a proportionate, procedurally fair process that tests the facts, considers the response of the person complained about and addresses any health and safety risk.
Key Takeaways
Key Takeaways for Employers
- ✓Use neutral, fact-based questions and provide an alternative way to complain if the manager is involved.
- ✓Separate immediate risk controls from findings about whether bullying occurred.
- ✓Keep the form, evidence, interview notes and outcome securely and limit access to people who need it.
- ✓Get employment-law advice before disciplining anyone or dismissing a complaint as vexatious.
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How should an employer manage the complaint after lodgement?
Step 1: Acknowledge and triage
Acknowledge receipt promptly and explain who will review the complaint. Triage the issue for immediate risk, conflicts of interest, potential criminal conduct, sexual harassment, discrimination, workers compensation concerns and any risk of retaliation. Avoid telling the complainant that the allegation is proven or that a particular person will be punished.
Step 2: Set interim controls without prejudging the outcome
Interim controls might include changing reporting lines, separating meetings, adjusting shifts, providing a support person, directing people not to contact each other about the matter or placing someone on paid leave where justified. Explain that an interim control is a risk-management step, not a finding that bullying occurred. Document why the control was selected and review it.
Step 3: Choose a fair investigation process
A minor, undisputed issue may be handled through facilitated discussion or management action. Serious, repeated or disputed allegations usually require a structured investigation. The investigator should define the allegations, collect relevant material, interview the complainant and respondent, speak with relevant witnesses and make findings against clear standards. Our workplace investigations guidance can help employers plan that process.
Step 4: Give the respondent a genuine opportunity to respond
Provide enough detail for the respondent to understand the allegations and a reasonable opportunity to answer. Do not disclose information that is irrelevant or unnecessarily private. Consider each response objectively, test inconsistencies and avoid treating a complaint form as conclusive evidence.
Step 5: Communicate the outcome and take action
Once findings are made, decide what action is appropriate. This might include coaching, a direction, policy training, mediation where suitable, a performance-management step, discipline or changes to workplace systems. Communicate the outcome to the complainant and respondent to the extent lawful and practical, while protecting confidential information.
Keep a clear record of the complaint, risk assessment, investigation plan, evidence, interview notes, findings, outcome and follow-up. A complaint that is not substantiated is not necessarily false or vexatious. Employers should distinguish an unproven allegation from deliberate misconduct.
Common mistakes employers should avoid
- Delaying the first response: silence can increase risk and undermine confidence in the process.
- Using loaded questions: ask for facts and examples rather than suggesting the answer.
- Assuming a manager cannot be complained about: provide an independent escalation route.
- Promising absolute confidentiality: explain that information may need to be shared to investigate and manage risk.
- Retaliating against a complainant or witness: monitor for adverse treatment and remind managers of expectations.
- Calling reasonable management action bullying: performance and disciplinary action can be legitimate when carried out reasonably, but the manner and context still matter.
Practical template fields for an employer complaint form
Review the form with your policies and training. Your HR best practice resources should align with the form, reporting channels, disciplinary process and record-keeping controls. You can also review free employment documents and templates when building a consistent document set.
When should an employer get legal guidance?
Obtain advice early where allegations involve senior executives, multiple workers, alleged victimisation, sexual harassment, discrimination, threats, medical risk, a likely Fair Work Commission application or possible dismissal. Independent guidance can help the employer define allegations, preserve procedural fairness and choose a proportionate response without turning the investigation into an unnecessary legal battle.
Fair Work Centre provides employer-focused employment law guidance. Call 1300 161 828 or visit the membership plans for employers to see how direct lawyer advice and HR documents can support your process.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is a structured intake document an employer can use to record an employee’s concerns about alleged unreasonable and repeated behaviour. It should capture specific events, dates, people involved, witnesses, evidence, impact and any immediate safety concern. It should not force the complainant to decide whether the legal definition of bullying is met.
Include the complainant’s contact details, the people involved, a factual description of each incident, dates and locations, witnesses, documents or messages, steps already taken, the impact on work and health, and the outcome sought. Add a declaration that the information is accurate to the complainant’s knowledge and a privacy notice explaining how the information will be handled.
An employer should assess every complaint and decide on a proportionate response. A formal investigation will often be appropriate where the allegations are serious, disputed, repeated, involve a manager, raise safety concerns or could lead to disciplinary action. Even where a full investigation is not warranted, the employer should document the assessment and address any risk.
Under section 789FD of the Fair Work Act 2009, a worker is bullied at work when an individual or group repeatedly behaves unreasonably towards the worker or group and that behaviour creates a risk to health and safety. Reasonable management action carried out in a reasonable manner is excluded. The facts and context matter.
Yes. A worker who says they are being bullied at work can apply to the Fair Work Commission for an order to stop bullying, including through Form F72. The Commission may make orders it considers appropriate to prevent the bullying from continuing. Employers should respond promptly and preserve relevant records.
A sensible first response is to acknowledge receipt, check for immediate health or safety risks, explain the next steps, preserve evidence, identify conflicts of interest and appoint an impartial investigator where needed. The employer should avoid promising a particular outcome, protect confidentiality as far as possible and give the respondent a fair chance to answer the allegations.
Potentially, but not merely because a complaint was made. Discipline should follow a fair process and reliable findings that the employee breached a policy, direction or workplace obligation. The employer should also consider whether the complaint was made in good faith and avoid retaliatory action or any decision that could create a general protections risk.
Keep the complaint form and related records in line with the organisation’s record-retention policy and any applicable legal obligations. Store them securely, restrict access and retain enough information to demonstrate what the employer knew, what risk assessment was completed, what process was followed and what action was taken. Obtain advice for complex or ongoing matters.
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