Creating safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces

Creating safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces is essential for any thriving tourism business.

The Safe Teams, Strong Businesses Toolkit has been developed specifically for tourism operators across the Great Ocean Road, Greater Geelong and The Bellarine to support practical action in preventing workplace gender-based violence.

Designed with the realities of tourism businesses in mind, the toolkit provides clear guidance, practical examples and ready-to-use resources to help operators understand their legal obligations, identify workplace risks, strengthen workplace culture, and build safer environments for staff, volunteers, customers and visitors.

Whether you’re a small business, accommodation provider, attraction, hospitality venue, tour operator or community organisation, the toolkit offers practical actions that can be scaled to suit your workplace. It includes guidance on leadership, policies and procedures, staff support, workplace culture, responding to disclosures, and preparing for high-risk periods.

Developed through collaboration between tourism industry stakeholders and experts in workplace gender-based violence prevention, this resource helps tourism businesses take proactive steps to create workplaces where everyone feels safe, respected and supported.

Download the toolkit

Practical tools for preventing gender-based violence in tourism workplaces — free to download and use in your business.

You can also view the toolkit and all of its linked resources online at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Barwon South West.

What the toolkit covers

This toolkit supports tourism operators to promote safe and respectful workplaces. It helps you to take proactive steps to prevent workplace gender-based violence. This means:

• creating a strong, safe and respectful workplace where gender-based violence is less likely to occur
• responding effectively if something does happen.

Proactively preventing workplace gender-based violence is good for business. It strengthens staff morale, productivity and organisational performance, protects and enhances reputation, and helps position you as an employer of choice. It also ensures you meet your legal and ethical obligations to create a safe and respectful workplace.

Who the toolkit is for

This toolkit has been developed to support Victoria’s tourism sector in the Great Ocean Road, Geelong and Bellarine regions, particularly small to medium operators without human resource teams to drive this work. It provides a range of practical options to help you take meaningful action, no matter your size.

How to use the toolkit

This toolkit is designed to help you decide which actions are the best fit for your business in order to make the most difference for your employees, volunteers, customers and clients. This might include some ‘quick wins’ as well as longer term goals.

The toolkit is divided into three sections:

3. Find out more

Links you into resources, training and supports to help get you started.

The appendices contain additional information, including definitions, examples of risk controls, policy and procedure guidance and support services.

Acknowledgements

The toolkit was developed with input from tourism operators and bodies across the Geelong, Bellarine and Great Ocean Road region and from experts in preventing workplace gender-based violence. It does not seek to replicate existing resources — rather, its aim is to provide tailored information for the tourism sector to help embed workplace violence prevention into everyday business. Thanks to Tourism Greater Geelong and Bellarine, Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism, Gender and Disaster Australia and WorkSafe.

Written by Claire Varley Consulting and designed by Story Shape. We acknowledge the support of the Victorian Government.