Tracey Spicer has announced the launch of NOW Australia, a non-for-profit, non-partisan organisation that will help survivors of sexual harassment and assault in the workplace and across all industries.
In announcing the news, Spicer said the organisation will connect survivors of workplace sexual harassment with the right counselling and legal support. She said she also believes it will give a voice to some of the lowest-paid and marginalised workers in the country.
“NOW is more than a call for change. It’s the place people can have that crucial first conversation about what they’re going through. By connecting them to the support and advice they need, we’re also providing the strategies to eliminate sexual harassment in the workplace for the next generation,” she said.
“We want to help those in Australia’s lowest paid workplaces. At the moment, many simply don’t have a voice.”
It’s estimated one in two women and one in four men will be sexually harassed in their lifetime.
In addition to working directly with survivors, the organisation will work closely with community and legal sectors, and well as government authorities, to map out how we can further protect men and women from intimidation and abuse in the workplace.
Tracey Spicer sits down with Mia Freedman to chat about all the work she’s done about workplace harassment. Post continues after audio.
Last year, Spicer told her story of surviving workplace bullying and sexual harassment during her career as a television journalist in her book The Good Girl Stripped Bare. In October, she sent out a single tweet that would be the catalyst for multiple investigations into sexual misconduct by high-profile men in the entertainment industry.
Since then, she has been inundated by more than 1500 people with #MeToo stories across a range of industries.
Upwards of 30 of Australia’s biggest stars have joined forces to launch NOW, including ambassadors Tina Arena, Deborah Mailman, Missy Higgins, Abby Earl, Melinda Schneider, Helen Dallimore, Sarah Blasko, Danielle McCormack, Mahalia Barnes, Michelle Law, Kate Miller-Heidke, Jenny Morris, Clare Bowditch, Candy Bowers, Katie Noonan and Zizindi Okenyo.
Meanwhile, Ann Sherry AO is NOW’s inaugural Patron.
The organisation, now, needs a little bit of your help. Today, they’re launching a month-long crowdfunding campaign to help them build the funds to create the change the want to create.
NOW from LITTLE SURE SHOTS on Vimeo.
So, for more information and to donate to NOW Australia please visit http://www.now.org.au/.