NSW Police rocked by damning culture review into bullying, harassment and fear inside the force
Sydney, Thursday evening — The NSW Police Force has been forced to confront a blunt and ugly account of its own house, after an independent cultural review found bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment sitting at unacceptable levels inside Australia’s largest police force.
The report, released on Thursday, was led by former Victorian equal opportunity and human rights commissioner Kristen Hilton. More than 5,000 current and former sworn and unsworn staff took part through interviews, surveys, submissions and group discussions.
Its central finding is hard to dress up: too many police employees say they do not feel safe calling out bad behaviour. The review found workplace conduct and confidence in reporting were major problems, with concerns about leadership, career progression, flexibility, support and outdated systems running through the evidence.
Guardian Australia reported that every female employee who took part in the review had either experienced or witnessed harassment, undermining or belittlement. The report also found women and minority staff still faced barriers in recruitment, development and promotion. In more than a century of women serving in NSW Police, the force has had only one female commissioner.
The official NSW Police response was immediate. Commissioner Mal Lanyon accepted all 29 recommendations and said an implementation plan would be overseen by the force’s independent Audit and Risk Committee. Police say work already under way includes a review of promotions, a leadership framework, recruitment changes, a two-year program aimed at stopping harmful behaviour, and continuing investment in mental health and critical incident support.
There is a careful distinction in the report: it did not investigate individual allegations. It looked at the culture and the machinery that is supposed to stop harm, deal with complaints and keep people in the job. That makes the findings broader, and in some ways more damaging. This is not one bad station, one loose unit or one complaint gone wrong. The review describes a system where fear, favouritism, weak accountability and fatigue have been able to take root.
That matters well beyond police locker rooms and command offices. A police force that cannot protect its own people from bullying and harassment has a harder road convincing the public that it can police power fairly on the street. It also comes after intense scrutiny of NSW Police over use of force, body-worn camera rules and civil claims involving alleged misconduct.
Lanyon said the review was an important and timely snapshot of the organisation and thanked staff for speaking openly. Police Minister Yasmin Catley said the government was taking the findings seriously and described the acceptance of all recommendations as a chance to strengthen conditions for the thousands of officers serving the state.
Hilton said culture was not something off to the side, but something that directly affected the way the organisation performed. That line cuts to the heart of the matter. In policing, culture is not office politics. It shapes who gets heard, who gets promoted, who gets protected, and who walks away.
The test now is not whether NSW Police can issue the right statements. It is whether officers and staff who spoke up in this review see anything change when the paperwork is filed away and the next roster goes up.
Sources: NSW Police Force, Guardian Australia, ABC News.