The concept of what is acceptable and unacceptable behaviour at work has made some huge steps forward in recent years.

We say 'forward' because inherent in these changes is the underlying principle that everybody has the right to feel safe at work.

Society has accepted that psychological health, and threats to mental health in a workplace, though more intangible or difficult to quantify, are potentially as dangerous and costly as traditional industrial dangers.

When a royal commission has been called into the impacts of mental health, what it is costing society and how we as a society are letting the victims down, these stories are not insubstantial whinging that can be addressed with a "toughen up!"

READ MORE: The Boys' Club: meet the women who stood up in the face of workplace harassment

We would no more accept allowing someone to work in a high psychological risk scenario without support or boundaries than we would accept children working in a nineteenth-century coal mine.

Concurrent to the emergence of this universal principle, is growing awareness of the impacts and costs when these things go wrong.

Ballarat as a city knows all too well how enduring and toxic is the legacy of mental abuse long after physical damage may have healed.

The targeting or mistreatment of women in the workplace just because they are new, are in the minority, are young, inexperienced or more abhorrent still, because they reject sexual advances, has rightly generated a zero tolerance in so many fields.

What is clear is it is not, nor ever was, "just a joke."

This shift in mindset includes traditional "tough" jobs where workers are frequently under a lot of stress and risk.

The army, navy, police force and CFA have all come under a degree of withering scrutiny in recent years for outmoded and dangerous "bloke-ish" cultures.

All have recognised to stay safe, not to mention effective, the culture must be addressed within their ranks.

Indeed revelations have shown in these professions where vulnerability may seem least, the damage can be greatest and so too should the support.

No one is denying working in prisons is demanding and sometimes involves dealing with the worst.

But when the greatest threat can come from fellow staff members, it's time to rethink the culture.