Respect is Common Property
An SCAQ campaign to ensure the people who manage our buildings can do their jobs safely, and our communities can get things done.
Respect is Common Property
A Strata Community Association Queensland (SCAQ) Advocacy Campaign
In a strata community, we share the pool, the lifts, the gardens and the decisions. We also share responsibility for how we treat each other. This year SCAQ asked Queensland strata professionals about their working lives, almost all of them described conduct no one should face at work, and three in four had considered leaving the sector because of it. Respect is Common Property is our response: a shared standard for everyone in strata, so meetings get things done and the people who look after our buildings can do their jobs safely.
What we found
What Strata Professionals told us
In 2026, SCAQ surveyed strata professionals across Queensland about conduct they experience at work. Most strata communities are respectful places. But the conduct of a few is taking a real toll.
98%
faced unreasonable conduct at work in the past 12 months
3 in 4
have considered leaving the strata sector because of it
7 in 10
say it has increased over the past three years
0%
reported it to WHSQ, the BCCM Commissioner or QCAT
Silence isn't a sign the problem is small. It's a sign people don't see a path. The 'Respect is Common Property' campaign is about building one.
Based on responses from strata professionals from SCAQ's 2026-member survey. Figures describe respondents, not the whole sector.
What SCAQ is doing about it
Leading the conversation
SCAQ is the peak body for Queensland's strata sector. We're turning what members told us into practical change, for managers, committees and the communities they serve.
Building the evidence
We've gathered the first Queensland data on what strata professionals face at work. We'll keep measuring, so progress can be tracked, not assumed.
Working with government
We're engaging Workplace Health and Safety Queensland and the Attorney-General on a clear, shared code of behaviour for owners and occupiers.
Supporting our members
We're helping firms manage psychosocial risks well, with guidance, training and a community of peers who understand the work.
Respect in practice
How to disagree professionally
Disagreement is a normal part of community living. Budgets, levies, by-laws: there's plenty to debate, and robust debate is healthy. Abuse isn't on the agenda.
1
Challenge the decision, not the person
2
Put it in writing, once. Allow reasonable time for a reply
3
Use the dispute pathway. That's what it's there for
4
Keep contact to business hours, unless it's an emergency
A respectful building is a better building to live in.
Resources and Support
Queensland Resources
Help is available, whether you manage strata, sit on a committee or live in a scheme.
For Strata Professionals & Employers
• Managing psychosocial hazards at work — WorkSafe Queensland's Code of Practice and guidance on aggression from clients and third parties
• Report a workplace safety concern — Workplace Health and Safety Queensland
• Code of conduct for body corporate managers — your obligations under the BCCM Act
• Support for your wellbeing — Beyond Blue and Lifeline, available 24/7
For owners, occupiers and committees
• Body corporate disputes — the BCCM Office's free information service and dispute resolution.
• Code of conduct for committee members — what's expected of every committee voting member
• Your strata manager's role — what a body corporate manager does and doesn't do
• Tribunal matters — QCAT for disputes that need a formal decision.
If you feel unsafe, call 000. For non-urgent police matters, call Policelink on 131 444. For support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Back the campaign
Respect is Common Property - Pass it on! Here's how you can help make respect the standard in every scheme.
Use the hashtag
Follow and share #RespectInStrata
Stronger Together
You don't have to manage this alone
Our survey showed most strata professionals carry this conduct on their own. Being part of a professional community changes that: peers who understand, guidance you can rely on, and a voice that reaches government.