WHS Law Briefing

SafeWork NSW introduces ‘High Risk Workplaces and Repeat Offenders Program’

SafeWork NSW has established a High Risk Workplaces and Repeat Offenders Program for duty holders who have been identified as having an elevated risk profile and are considered most in need of regulatory oversight and intervention. Program guidelines have been published by SafeWork NSW, however the consequences for PCBUs who are identified for inclusion in the Program (including where enforcement action is subsequently taken by SafeWork NSW) remain to be seen.

Restructures and other industrial relations matters leading to WHS regulator investigations

We are increasingly seeing WHS regulators investigate the management of psychosocial hazards in the context of restructures, which are identified as a source of psychosocial hazard in WHS Codes of Practice. For example, Cobar Management Pty Ltd has entered into an enforceable undertaking as an alternative to a WHS prosecution for allegedly exposing workers to psychosocial hazards in the context of a restructure, and it has been reported that SafeWork NSW has issued a notice to a university regarding its restructuring plan. We have also seen examples of WHS regulators investigating other “industrial relations” matters, such as work and rest periods and consultation with workers regarding changes to reporting lines.

In our upcoming article “Principal Contractor appointment in the renewable energy sector” we examine the challenges faced by developers in respect of Principal Contractor appointment when using a “split contract” model instead of the traditional “EPC contract model”. In a split contract model, the developer contracts directly with multiple specialised contractors for separate packages of work, whereas in the traditional EPC model a single contractor takes full responsibility for the engineering, procurement, and construction aspects of a project.

Global WHS trends and issues

In our recent article “Global WHS trends” we examined four key issues and trends affecting organisations globally from a work health and safety perspective, both now and in the future: global WHS regulation; the rise of technology; changing workforce populations and structures; and psychosocial hazards and risks.