A NSWNMA survey of racism in the workplace has led to a collaborative effort to confront the problem.

The NSWNMA and Australian Human Rights Commission have formed an alliance to work for safer health and aged care workplaces for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers and members of other racially marginalised groups.

Called the NSW Anti-Racism Collaborative, the new body is working with other stakeholders to reduce workplace racism as it is a cause of mental and physical harm.

The Collaborative is chaired by the Race Discrimination Commissioner, Giridharan Sivaraman, with the NSWNMA providing administrative support.

A wide range of organisations and individuals attended the first meeting of the Collaborative’s steering committee in December which discussed priorities for the next three years.

They included NSW Health, the private, aged care and primary health sectors, representatives from the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Islander Nurses and Midwives (CATSINaM), government ministers, professional bodies, workplace health and safety regulators, experts in anti-racism and diverse workforce representatives.

NSWNMA General Secretary Michael Whaites said the Association had consulted with its Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Member Circle, and groups representing Fijian, Filipino and Nepalese health workers in Australia.

“We want to bring the voices of members who are racially marginalised to the Collaborative and to the work of the Association more broadly,” he said.

“This also recognises the increasing numbers of migrant workers in the NSW nursing and midwifery workforce, and in the Association’s membership.”

SURVEY IDENTIFIES WORKPLACE RACISM

The Collaborative arose from a 2024 NSWNMA survey of racism in the health and aged care sectors.

It found that 70 per cent of nurses, midwives, AiNs, and care workers believe racism exists in their workplace.

Of those survey respondents who identified as having a culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) and/or Indigenous background, 64 per cent said they had been a victim of racism.

Forty per cent of workers affected by racism reported personal or physical harm, including mental health deterioration and financial loss.

One in five survey respondents said they had been verbally abused or insulted, one third reported bullying, and 27 per cent felt race affected their career progression.

More than a quarter of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander respondents reported feeling socially alienated at work.

Colleagues were cited as the main source of racist behaviour by 68 per cent of respondents. Managers were identified in 43 per cent of responses, with residents/patients pinpointed in 41 per cent of replies.

Seventy-three per cent did not report incidents of racism to management due to a lack of confidence in the system or fear of repercussions.

Eighty-eight per cent of nurses, midwives and carers who reported an incident of racism said they received no support.

LACK OF PROGRESS

The survey findings were published in a 2025 NSWNMA report titled Standing Together Against Racism.

It points to a disappointing lack of progress in tackling racism since a 2019 NSWNMA survey highlighted the problem.

“It’s time for all stakeholders to reflect, and work together with affected workers and organisations to address racism and its impacts in a more intentional way,” says the foreword to Standing Together Against Racism.

“The NSWNMA adopts the position that racism should never be tolerated.”

The report says workplace safety hazards arising from racism often fall outside the usual scope of incident reporting, which has traditionally focused on physical harms.

“Changes to the Work Health and Safety (WHS) legislative framework in NSW have further clarified that psychosocial hazards, including exposure to racism are WHS issues that must be managed holistically alongside the more traditional physical hazards.”

RACISM IS A PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS

At the launch of Standing Together Against Racism in September 2025, Race Discrimination Commissioner Siva raman thanked the NSWNMA for taking the initiative to tackle racism in health and aged care workplaces.

He described racism as a public health crisis that “also harms professionals in the system, who are left feel ing unheard and unsupported”. He added, “The Collaborative brings together government, employers and the union to develop collective solutions that effect system-wide change.”

“We can’t tackle systemic racism in silos. Coming together to learn from each other, and hold ourselves accountable, is the only we will see meaningful and ongoing change.”