What is Work Health & Safety (WHS)?

Work Health and Safety | Top 5 FAQs

1. What are the model WHS Laws and which states/territories have adopted them?

The “model” WHS laws were developed by Safe Work Australia in 2011 and include the model WHS Act, model WHS Regulation and model Codes of Practice.

The model WHS Act aims to harmonise the framework around protecting the health and safety of workers and workplaces by safeguarding workers and other persons from harm, requiring duty holders to eliminate or minimise risk, promoting the provision of advice and consultation and facilitating a consistent approach to WHS. The model WHS Regulation prescribes the requirements to support the duties contained in the model WHS Act and the model Code of Practice sets out the practical guidelines to achieving the requisite standards prescribed by the Model WHS Act and Regulation.

For the model WHS laws to be legally binding, each state and territory is responsible for implementing and enforcing the laws. Currently, the model WHS laws have been implemented in the following states and territories:

1. Australian Capital Territory;
2. New South Wales;
3. Northern Territory;
4. Queensland;
5. South Australia;
6. Tasmania; and
7. The Commonwealth.

2. What do business owners need to do to comply with WHS Laws?

The underlying principle of the model WHS Act is that, so far as is reasonably practicable, duty holders provide workers with the highest level of health and safety. This means that a person conducting and undertaking a business, as the duty holder, is required to do whatever is reasonably able to be done at the time to ensure the health and safety of their workers.

In assessing whether any measure was reasonably practical, the WHS Laws require the following matters to be considered:

1. The probability of a worker being exposed to a hazard or risk;
2. The degree of injury or harm that may result from the hazard or risk;
3. What the person conducting or undertaking a business knew or should have reasonably known about the hazard or risk and how to remove or mitigate it;
4. The availability of ways to remove or mitigate the hazard or risk; and
5. The costs involved in removing or mitigating the hazard or risk.

3. What about workers, do they have duties under WHS Laws?

Workers do have a duty at work to take reasonable care for their own health and safety, as well as the health and safety of others who may be impacted by their conduct. Additionally, workers are required to comply with any reasonable instruction or direction given by a person conducting or undertaking a business which relates to WHS Laws and comply and cooperate with the WHS policies and procedures of the person conducting or undertaking a business.

 4. What is a notifiable incident and what do I need to do if one occurs?

A notifiable incident is one that involves death, serious injury or serious illness to a worker or a dangerous incident that exposes workers to serious risk. The common notifiable incidents, include but are not limited to:

1. Injury or illness that results in:
   • Death;
   • immediate hospital treatment as an in-patient;
   • immediate treatment for serious injuries (for example amputation, scalping, a spinal injury, loss of a bodily function or a serious laceration, burn, head injury or eye injury);
   • medical treatment within 48 hours of exposure to a substance.
2. Immediate or imminent exposure to:
   • the uncontrolled escape, spillage or leakage of a substance;
   • an uncontrolled implosion, explosion or fire;
   • an uncontrolled escape of gas, steam or a pressurised substance;
   • an electric shock;
   • the fall or release from height of any plant, substance or thing;
   • the collapse, overturning, failure or malfunction of, or damage to, plant that is required to be licensed or registered;
   • the collapse or partial collapse of a structure, including an excavation or of any shoring supporting an excavation;
   • the inrush of water, mud or gas into an underground excavation or tunnel;
   • the interruption of the main system of ventilation to an underground excavation or tunnel.

Under WHS Laws, a person conducting or undertaking a business must report a notifiable incident to WorkSafe by the fastest possible means and keep a record of all notifiable incidents for at least five years.

Failure to notify SafeWork of the occurrence of a notifiable incident, keep a record of a notifiable incident or preserve an incident site until an inspector arrives carries large penalties.

 5. Why is it important to have a specialist WHS lawyer in your corner?

WHS Laws demand strict compliance. Regardless of whether conduct may be unintentional, a person conducting or undertaking a business can be subject to large sanctions or penalties for any non-compliance.

From the outset, a specialist WHS Lawyer can advise you on the necessary steps you should take as a person conducting or undertaking a business to minimise exposure to WHS hazards or risks, including the development of WHS management policies and procedures and WHS training programs.

A specialist WHS Lawyer can also aid you with ensuring continual compliance with due diligence requirements and keeping up to date with the frequent changes to WHS Laws.

In the event that your business becomes subject to a WHS related investigation, a specialist WHS lawyer can advise and represent you and your business in those WHS investigations or disputes.