Systemic discrimination against women and First Nations people in the Queensland Police "continues to be driven by outdated processes and attitudes," a new report has found.

A 16-month review of the Queensland Police Service (QPS) by the Queensland Human Rights Commission (QRHC) found the attitudes embedded in the service's policies had fallen short of modern community standards, which had "contributed" to service members leaving.

The QHRC interviewed more than 2,800 former and current QPS staff for the review, titled Strengthening the Service. It examined the causes of longstanding and deeply-entrenched discrimination within QPS against women, First Nations, and culturally diverse officers, which harmed the workforce, as well as impacting policing outcomes and corroding community trust.

QRHC Commissioner Scott McDougall said the review was "not a case of simply rooting out a few bad apples".

"QPS's workplace culture and systems have allowed discrimination to thrive and systemic discrimination needs systemic solutions," he said.

The report said police from diverse backgrounds remained under-represented, especially in leadership.

"This will not change until QPS dismantles structural barriers to recruitment and career advancement and brings standards in line with modern policing practice. QPS should use positive measures to uplift diversity and recognise disadvantage and past discrimination."

The commission said they heard about widespread patterns of everyday/casual racism and sexism, often in the form of "jokes, banter or dark humour".

The QHRC said they heard people being labelled "diversity hires", which one officer said they felt they wouldn't have been promoted if they had been clearer about their Aboriginality.

Gabriel*, a long- serving Indigenous officer in the QPS, spoke of the heavy-drinking and misogynistic culture in the QPS, saying he didn't disclose his heritage to some people because of it.

"[The new first-year constables] were seen as the new breed and we stood out. The last thing I wanted to do was say I was Aboriginal – I felt like I didn't need to add diversity to the mix," he said.

He said he has experienced racist comments which were "justified as 'banter'," arguing he didn't want to "whinge and complain about every little thing, sometimes they're just seeing if I react, so it's easier not to react".

"I have applied for higher ups, but I can't write a resume to save myself. I've applied for roles in First Nations areas up north, but I apparently haven't been able to sell my cultural diversity very well," Gabriel said.

Mr McDougall said QPS still favoured physical skills traditionally held by white men without caring responsibilities, citing recruits being forced to swim, despite rarely doing so in the job.

"It means the ability to swim is valued higher than other valuable skills like the ability to speak other languages or use emerging technologies that are increasingly critical to policing."

The QHRC review made 36 recommendations, which included for the QPS to review its minimum diversity targets and how they're reported, implementing KPIs to hold leaders accountable for improving workplace equality, as well for an expert to review recruitment standards to make sure they don't discriminate unlawfully.

Queensland Police Commissioner Steve Gollschewski would not confirm if the QPS would adopt the recommendations, instead saying they "carefully consider" them.

"The report is clear that there needs to be more work done," he told reporters on Tuesday.

"I understand there are members who upon reading the headline this morning may have felt let down by their leadership,"

He said whilst there were some "systemic" issues, Mr Gollschewski expressed "some disappointment" in the media coverage of the QPS, arguing it didn't give enough credit to the QPS for the work they do.

The QRHC will evaluate the QPS's implementation of the 36 recommendations between October 2026 to late 2027.