Mandatory spiking and sexual violence training for security and bar staff
Petitioner:
Ms Sarah Williams
| Member:
Crakanthorp, Tim
| No. of Signatories:
20,181
| Date closed:
25/05/2023
To the Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly, drink spiking is a prevalent issue across New South Wales. It refers to the deliberate poisoning of drinks with either drugs and/or alcohol without the consent of the person consuming it. The main symptoms of drink spiking include nausea, blackouts, becoming unconscious, vomiting, etc. Victims of drink spiking are often dismissed due to the potential overlap in symptoms with voluntary alcohol and drug use (AIC, 2004).
Drink spiking is sometimes referred to as a date rape offence or as drug-facilitated sexual assault. Data highlights that over one-third of all drink spiking incidents result in sexual assault, with less than one sixth of such cases being reported to the police. Statistics into drink spiking are significantly under-reported, with shame, stigma, not being believed, lack of recollection/memory of what happened as main contributors to under-reporting (AIC, 2004). The importance of renewed training and trauma-informed practices has never been more paramount.
What Were You Wearing Australia (WWYW) aims to collaborate with local night clubs and venues to prevent drink spiking. WWYW aims to reduce the stigma placed on victims with mandatory trauma-informed training for all bar and security staff so that serious signs and symptoms of spiking are not ignored.
The undersigned petitioners therefore ask the Legislative Assembly to implement mandatory drink spiking and sexual violence prevention training for all security and bar staff at nightclubs, including spiking prevention kits, educational resources, and posters in venues that will assist with patron safety and awareness.
