A Workplace Racial Equality Agency would be set up under a Greens policy to address racism in the private and public sectors.
The $97.5 million plan would measure racial equity within workplaces and gather data on the composition of workforces and boards, along with actions by companies to deal with racism and discrimination.
The agency would be based on the current Workplace Gender Equality Agency, which publishes data on the pay gap between men and women as well as the gender make-up of companies.
As part of its remit, the agency would publish information on the racial make-up of workplaces and help employers improve representation among their employees.
Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi said the agency would be crucial in dealing with incidents of racism in work environments.
"Systemic and entrenched racism in workplaces is not going to go away by itself, it needs concerted effort," she said.
"It boggles my mind that in 2025 when racism is rife in this country that a majority of the ASX corporate governance council would vote down diversity reporting rules.
"It is time to drag workplaces to the table whether they like it or not."
It comes as the US government under President Donald Trump rolls backing many diversity and inclusion initiatives in its federal workforce.
The announcement of the agency on Friday coincides with the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, also known as Harmony Day.
"While many workplaces and organisations celebrate 'Harmony Day', their employees face racism every day. This agency will uncover the reality of racism at work," Senator Faruqi said.
"I'm calling on workplaces to dump tokenistic celebrations of 'harmony', and instead sit down with their staff to listen to them and tackle the toxic racism harming them."
22°C