Investigation Arista: A report concerning the investigation into the Queensland Police Service’s 50/50 gender equity recruitment strategy

The Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC) was notified of allegations by the Queensland Police Service (QPS) in November 2019 and commenced a corruption investigation in January 2020.

As the CCC’s investigation evolved, the alleged conduct fell into two main categories:

• The QPS’s use of discriminatory recruitment practices to achieve the 50% gender equity target; and
• The deceptive reporting practices used mainly by staff in the QPS Recruiting Section.

The Arista report details how what started as a nobly intended strategy was poorly communicated to front line staff who were tasked with its implementation and discriminatory practices were implemented to achieve its goal. Those practices were hidden by misleading information and spin and senior executives blindly accepted the spin and did not enquire further.