What we expect from you
We strive to communicate with you with respect and courtesy, and we expect the same in return. We understand that when you contact us, you may be dealing with frustrating, emotional or stressful situations. However, we cannot tolerate behaviour that is harassing, abusive, intimidating, discriminatory or threatening towards our staff.
Examples of unacceptable behaviours include:
- Harassment, bullying, verbal abuse, making threats, shouting and yelling, or seeking to intimidate staff
- Making excessive, unreasonable or aggressive demands, submissions, or inquiries
- Sexual harassment
- Using profanity and/or obscene language
- Making discriminatory comments, including racial, gendered, or ethnic slurs
- Causing unsafe and/or unsanitary conditions
- Refusing to leave the Ombudsman’s Office when requested
Engaging in any of these behaviours may result in a restriction or loss of service. The Ombudsman’s Office will take appropriate action where necessary to protect the safety and well-being of staff.
Service and communication restrictions
We reserve the right to restrict service and communication if you harass, abuse, threaten, intimidate, or discriminate against our staff. Examples of how we might restrict your service include:
- Restricting you from visiting our Office
- Restricting you from calling our Office
- Requiring you to communicate with us in writing only
Service restrictions seek to balance our commitment to serving you fairly and respectfully with our duty to protect our staff from abuse or harm.
Social media
We observe similar principles of respectful communication in our use of social media and interactions with users and followers. Read more about how we use social media here.