Now lawWork & Super Introduced in the House of Representatives, 31 Jul 2025

Agencies can now get court orders to protect their staff

Staff at places like Centrelink offices faced 1,694 serious incidents in one year. This law lets the agency itself ask a court to keep an abusive person away from them.

Official name: Commonwealth Workplace Protection Orders Bill 2025

Who it affects

• Federal workers: Staff, contractors, security guards, volunteers and MPs' staff can be covered by an order their agency asks for.
• Members of the public who abuse or threaten federal staff: A court can ban them from a workplace, or from contacting some workers, for up to 2 years.
• People who rely on Centrelink and other services: An order cannot cut them off from their payments. It must set out another way to get them, such as by phone.
• Children under 14: No order can be made against them.

A Centrelink worker was attacked

In May 2023 a worker at a service centre was attacked with a blade. The worker was from Services Australia, the agency that runs Centrelink and Medicare.

After the attack, the government asked Graham Ashton to look at safety. He is a former head of Victoria Police. His review made 44 suggestions.

Number 17 said the national government should copy a scheme the Australian Capital Territory already had. These are called workplace protection orders. They are court orders that keep a person away from workers.

Between July 2023 and June 2024 there were 1,694 serious incidents in Services Australia's face-to-face services. The Parliamentary Library works for all MPs and takes no side. It notes the government had over 170,000 public servants in 2023. Public servants are people who work for the government. About 100,000 were in jobs like these.

Before this law, a worker who was attacked or threatened usually had to ask for an order in their own name. The minister at the time, Bill Shorten, told Parliament this could hurt the victim all over again. This law lets the agency ask for the order.

An earlier version of this bill came in during 2024. It ran out of time when the 2025 election was called. This is the new version. Tony Burke brought it in. He is the Home Affairs Minister, in charge of security, police and borders.

Who is protected

A federal worker is anyone who works for a national government agency or the High Court, Australia's top court. That includes contractors, staff from hire firms, volunteers and staff of MPs. Private security guards at a government office are covered too.

A federal workplace is anywhere a worker usually goes for work. That includes pop-up stands in shopping centres and emergency help centres. It also covers online chats, and a worker's home when they work from home.

Violence here means harm, or threats that would make a fair-minded person fear harm. The government says this includes assault, stalking, harassment, bullying, and abuse by phone or email.

The person must target the worker because of their federal job. The behaviour must also get in the way of the government doing its work. A worker does not need to wear a uniform to be covered.

The law does not cover someone who is just annoying. It does not cover people who complain about the government or its services.

How an order is made

The head of the agency asks a court for the order. They can also pick a senior staff member to do it. The court can be a state or territory court, the Federal Court or the Federal Circuit and Family Court. These last two are national courts.

The court must agree on 3 things. The person was violent. There is a real risk they will do it again. The order is needed to stop that.

The court only needs to find these things are more likely true than not. Lawyers call this the balance of probabilities.

There are 4 kinds of order. A final order lasts up to 2 years. A short-term order protects workers for up to 12 months while the court case runs.

An urgent order can be asked for by phone or email in an emergency. It ends after 7 days unless a full request follows.

An agreed order is made when both sides say yes. The court can only make one if the person has proper help, when it thinks they find decisions hard.

Most orders only start once they are handed to the person face to face. This does not apply if the person was in court when it was made.

What an order can say

The court decides what the order says. It could ban someone from a Centrelink office. It could ban them from contacting a certain worker or group of workers. It can also cover a worker's home or offices overseas.

Before adding a condition, the court must weigh up two things. One is how hard it would make life for the person. The other is the harm to others. It looks at past violence and other orders. It must limit the person's rights as little as it can.

An order cannot stop someone getting government payments or services they are owed. It cannot stop them contacting their MP or joining in political debate. If a ban would get in the way, the order must set out another way.

Say a man is banned from his local service centre after threatening staff. The order might say he must deal with the agency by phone or at a different office.

Changes, endings and appeals

The person under the order can ask the court to change or cancel it at any time. So can the agency.

If the reasons for the order are gone, the agency must ask the court to cancel it. The court must then do so.

A final order can be taken to a higher court to be looked at again, no matter which court made it. The court must explain the order to the person and give its reasons.

Breaking an order

Breaking an order is a crime. The most you can get is 2 years in jail, a fine, or both. The fine is 120 penalty units, a set dollar amount in federal law.

The crime counts even if it happens overseas. The government says staff at embassies, Australia's offices in other countries, and election staff can face serious risks.

Privacy, guns and information

Courts must not publish the name of the worker being protected.

The agency must send a copy of each order to every state and territory office that keeps records of guns. Those offices can then decide under their own laws if the person should keep a gun licence.

Facts about orders can be shared with police and the lawyers who bring court cases. That includes the Australian Federal Police, the national police force. This can happen when it is needed to uphold the law.

Each side usually pays its own legal costs.

A review after 3 years

The minister must have the law reviewed soon after it has run for 3 years. The report must be shared with Parliament, with personal details taken out.

A group of senators had complained that the 2024 version left the review up to the minister.

Start date

The bill was brought into the House of Representatives on 31 July 2025. It passed there on 28 August 2025. The Senate, Parliament's second house, passed it on 29 October 2025.

It became law on 4 November 2025. That is when the Governor-General, who stands in for the King, signed it.

The law starts 6 months after that, or earlier if the government picks a date. That gives agencies and courts time to get ready.

Its journey through Parliament

Official sources

• Bill page on aph.gov.au
• Text of the bill
• Explanatory memorandum
• Bills Digest

Open the full interactive page