About the ADCQ

About the Anti-Discrimination Commission Queensland

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What is the Anti-Discrimination Commission? About us Who is the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner? How many complaints do you deal with? How many training sessions do you run? What can I expect from you? Client feedback about ADCQ service, procedure or policy

What is the Anti-Discrimination Commission?

The Commission is the organisation which administers the Queensland Anti-Discrimination Act 1991.We work to promote equality of opportunity and to protect people from unlawful discrimination, sexual harassment and public vilification.

There are two main ways we do this - one is by handling complaints from people, and the other is by informing people about discrimination issues.

About us

The Commission employs about 35 staff across four offices - Brisbane, Rockhampton, Townsville and Cairns. Most staff are located in Brisbane, while each of the regions has three staff members.

While all four offices manage both the complaints and education roles, the Brisbane office also includes the executive function, office support services, file management systems and information technology support.

Who is the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner?

Image of Commissioner Susan Booth Susan Booth is the Commissioner for the Queensland Anti-Discrimination Commission.

Susan was appointed in 2003, and has qualifications in teaching and law.

The Commissioner has statutory powers to assess and conciliate complaints of discrimination, sexual harassment, victimisation and vilification, and to inform the community about their rights and responsibilities under the law.

Susan Booth, Commissioner

How many complaints do you deal with?

On average, we take 10,000 phone enquiries each year. Of these, we might get about 1,000 complaints lodged, and generally, abou t 60% of these are accepted as falling within the jurisdiction of the Act.

The Brisbane office handles about 70% of these complaints, while each of the regional offices looks after about 10%.

How many training sessions do you run?

The figures for the last financial year show that we did almost 300 training and information sessions in Queensland. Again, the Brisbane office managed about 70% of these, while the regions handled the other 30%

These sessions range from a two hour introduction to the legislation and how it works, through to a full day course for Contact Officers. We also tailor courses to particular issues or needs.

What can I expect from you?

We take our legislative and education duties very seriously, and have a strong commitment to ensuring that rights and responsibilities are protected and understood. This means that you can expect us to:

handle complaints professionally
help everyone involved in a complaint to resolve the issues and reach an agreed settlement, if possible
ensure that everyone involved in a complaint has the opportunity to have their say, and that the process is fair
try to resolve complaints in a timely, efficient and cost effective way
provide reasons in plain English for our decisions
inform the Queensland community about the legislation, and their rights and responsibilities
provide high quality education and training services
answer queries and provide information in a helpful way, including referral to other agencies which might be able to help.

For information on more specific aspects of our work, please go to the Information Brochures page or Making a Complaint page.

Client feedback about ADCQ service, procedure or policy

The Anti-Discrimination Commission Queensland is committed to delivering quality services that respond to the needs of the community. To help us achieve this, we encourage your feedback on our services.

Sometimes this feedback may be an expression of dissatisfaction about a service, procedure or policy. We will try to resolve your concern as quickly and as informally as possible. However, if we are unable to resolve the issue to your satisfaction you may choose to lodge a formal complaint. The Resolving Complaints factsheet provides more information on how to make a complaint about the ADCQ.

This information is intended as a guide only. It is not a substitute for legal advice. For more information contact the Commission on 1300 130 670 statewide or Teletypewriter 1300 130 680 statewide.