Making a complaint

Overview

Sport Integrity Australia (SIA) was established as a single agency to deal with complaints about any integrity matter. However, in January 2022 SIA abruptly announced that it would no longer manage integrity complaints except for those relating to Child Safeguarding, Discrimination or Doping. This means that there are now two bodies managing complaints under the National Integrity Framework, as Australian Sailing manages other complaints. The table below summarises which complaints will be managed by SIA or Australian Sailing.

Regardless of which entity manages the complaint, it will still be managed according to the Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy (CDDP). Further down the page is a step-by-step guide on the complaint process.

Other support pathways

Safe Sport Hotline

Call 1800 161 361, available 7 am to 7 pm any day of the year.

The Safe Sport Hotline is part of an expanded service offered to members of sport to share their story with a trusted member of the Sport Integrity Australia team about integrity issues they have experienced.
The service includes an anonymous reporting capability that covers wider racial and cultural issues in sport for people who feel they have been discriminated against in their sport.

Mental health and wellbeing support

If you, or someone you care about, is struggling with an issue it's okay to reach out for support. Click here for a list of some mental health and wellbeing support providers.

Bullying in sport

Every person in sport, in every role, has the right to participate in an environment that is fun, safe and healthy, and to be treated with respect, dignity and fairness. Click here to read SIA's Bullying in Sport booklet.

Abusive or inappropriate content online

If you have a concern about abusive or inappropriate material online, you can also report it to the eSafety Commissioner for action. eSafety can investigate cyberbullying of children, adult cyber abuse, image-based abuse (sharing, or threatening to share, intimate images without the consent of the person shown) and illegal and restricted content. Click here to report to the eSafety Commissioner.

What is managed under the Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy?

The CDDP can be used to manage any instance of Prohibited Conduct under these policies:

 Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy

 Member Protection Policy

 Competition Manipulation and Sport Gambling Policy

 Improper Use of Drugs and Medicine Policy

What is not managed under the Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy?

The CDDP is forward-looking and puts in place a new process to protect the future of Australian sport. As such, Complaints that have already been managed under another complaints process in the past cannot be managed under the CDDP unless new information becomes available or there is a compelling reason to do so.

Additionally, non-recent complaints, or complaints about Prohibited Conduct that occurred before Australian Sailing adopted the CDDP (31 March 2021), cannot be managed through this process. Poor conduct which occurred before this should be managed under the disciplinary policies in place at the time.

Reporting Non-Recent Matters to Sport Integrity Australia

Participants can report non-recent Safeguarding matters or Discrimination matters to Sport Integrity Australia if they choose. This information can then be used in ways other than this Complaint Process to make sure similar behaviour doesn’t occur in future – for example, to help build education and intervention programs. Sport Integrity Australia can also pass the information to someone else who may be able to take action if appropriate (for example, police or a child protection agency).

Sport Integrity Australia’s Safe Sport Hotline is offered to members of sport to share their story with a trusted member of the Sport Integrity Australia team. Wellbeing support is offered throughout this process.

Phone 1800 161 361, available 7am-7pm, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

What is the Complaints Process?

Step 1: Initial assessment

The first step is an initial assessment. During this phase, Australian Sailing will decide whether the complaint should be managed at a lower level (for example, by the relevant club), managed by SIA (if it relates to Child Safeguarding, Discrimination or Doping), or referred to an external organisation (such as police, Fair Work, etc.).

Australian Sailing will also reject any complaint which:

• Is out-of-scope (that is, it does not relate to any Integrity policy);
• Frivolous or vexatious, unreasonably late, or unlikely to succeed; or
• Is not made by an eligible complainant, or about an eligible respondent.

In some cases, Provisional Action may be imposed while the complaint is managed.

Step 2: Investigation and finding

Depending on a range of factors including the severity of conduct alleged and the complexity of factual disputes, an investigation may be conducted or the matter may be dealt with by way of education and counselling, rather than a formal investigation and hearing.

If an investigation occurs, it may involve speaking to witnesses and reviewing any relevant documents to determine what actually happened. This can take some time and it is extremely important to do properly.

After the investigation, a finding will be made about whether the alleged behaviour did or did not actually occur, and whether it breached a relevant policy.

Step 3: Sanction and penalty

Where a breach of an eligible policy is found to have been committed an appropriate sanction will be determined. A sanction can include a range of measures from a reprimand to a suspension or expulsion from the sport depending on the breach. The respondent can either accept the breach and proposed sanction, at which point the matter will be finalised, or they can choose to appeal the findings against them and/or the proposed sanction through an appeal process.

Make a complaint