Anti-discrimination laws in force in Victoria are contained in seven separate pieces of legislation:

Discrimination and victimisation that occurs in the workplace may also be covered by the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) ("FW Act"). For further information regarding the FW Act, see: Chapter 15 Employment Conditions.

The overlap between Commonwealth and state laws can be complex. Note that a complaint of discrimination cannot be made generally under both Commonwealth and state legislation at the same time. People wishing to make a complaint of discrimination may contact the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (VEOHRC) for information:

Complaints of discrimination under the Commonwealth Racial Discrimination, Disability Discrimination, Age Discrimination, and Sex Discrimination Acts (listed above) should be made in writing (a complaint form can be downloaded from the website) and forwarded directly to the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) at the following address :

The new Fair Work Ombudsman can provide information about options to pursue an employment discrimination action under the FW Act. The contact details for the Fair Work Ombudsman are:

Discrimination is not generally a criminal offence. Instead, legislation enables people who have experienced certain forms of discrimination to access confidential conciliation services and, in some instances, a public hearing, to resolve their complaint.

There are, however, some criminal sanction included in the RRTA and the EO Act. The RRTA establishes the criminal offences of serious racial vilification and serious religious vilification. The EO Act includes the summary offence of discriminatory advertising, failing to comply with a notice requiring attendance or production of documents to VEOHRC, obstruction of VEOHRC, and providing false or misleading information to VEOHRC.