Bullying in strata

Social media platforms are replete with allegations of bullying within owners’ corporations.

Reports span every direction - strata managers targeting individual owners, owners directing hostility toward committees, and committee chairs exerting undue pressure on fellow members. The permutations are manifold, but the impact is consistent: dysfunction, distress, and disengagement.

While the Owners Corporations Act 2006 (Vic) does not explicitly define “bullying,” related concepts can be drawn from broader legal frameworks. Workplace bullying, as described by WorkSafe Victoria, involves repeated unreasonable behaviour that creates a risk to health and safety. Applied to strata communities, similar conduct (such as intimidation, exclusion, threats or persistent harassment), may fall within this understanding, particularly where it affects a person’s wellbeing or ability to participate in governance.

However, a key question is whether the residential strata environment is a workplace.

For some, it clearly is.

Yet one category of workers has received far less attention in this discussion – building management.

Building management in residential strata is a critical but often overlooked function. It spans a range of roles, from building managers overseeing daily operations to concierge and front desk staff providing resident services. Together, they form the operational backbone of many apartment communities.

Importantly, a significant proportion of this workforce may be employed under visa arrangements. This can create heightened vulnerability, with a worker’s right to remain in Australia tied to ongoing employment. Within this context, anecdotal reports suggest some staff feel compelled to resign rather than take entitled leave, even when adequate notice is given. These dynamics raise serious questions about power imbalances and whether some practices verge on exploitation.

Concerns have also been raised about the culture within certain service providers and how this translates into their engagement with owners’ corporations. Some committees report being threatened with the sudden withdrawal of staff or even termination of service agreements at short notice. Such tactics place committees under considerable pressure, particularly where building operations depend heavily on those personnel.

There are also informal reports of gendered dynamics, including instances of senior building management figures undermining female committee members. Tactics described include fostering division within committees – a classic “divide and conquer” approach. A divided committee is often a compliant one.

Whether this conduct constitutes bullying or aggressive commercial practice, it highlights a regulatory gap. Building management providers play a central role in strata communities, yet they are not explicitly addressed in the Owners Corporations Act 2006 (Vic). As Victoria anticipates long-overdue reforms to the Act, there is a clear opportunity to recognise and regulate this influential sector, thereby ensuring accountability, transparency and fair treatment for all involved.

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