Who Is Responsible For Workplace Safety and Health?

Who Is Responsible For Workplace Safety and Health?

Responsibility for workplace safety and health sits with several parties working together — the Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU), officers, workers, and dedicated WHS professionals. Under the model WHS laws, each holds distinct duties that combine to keep workplaces safe.

OHS Professionals vs. WHS Duty Holders

Occupational Health and Safety professionals are experts in health and safety, ensuring that workplaces remain safe for employees. Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) is the regulatory term for OHS across most of Australia.

Difference between a professional and duty holder comes down to function: OHS professionals provide expert advice, while a duty holder is anyone bound by obligations under WHS legislation with which compliance is required.

According to the Worker Representation and Participation Guide, duty holders and professionals are individuals who "provide for fair and effective workplace representation, consultation, co-operation and issue resolution concerning work health and safety."

WHS duty holders carry specific duties under the Work Health and Safety Act, including:

• Employers or CEOs
• Managers and Supervisors
• Workers or Work Groups
• Persons Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU)

WHS professionals possess the necessary skills, knowledge, and experience to carry out work health and safety duties. They include:

• Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs)
• Health and Safety Committee (HSC)
• Workplace Health and Safety Officers (WHSOs)

Other roles supporting WHS management may also include:

• Safety consultants
• Safety auditors
• Safety inspectors
• WHS advisors
• Risk managers
• Ergonomists
• Occupational hygienists
• Physiotherapists

Both groups work toward minimising hazards on site. WHS professionals develop and implement health and safety policy and procedures, while also managing training so employees know how to work safely within their environment.

Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU)

"A person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) has a primary duty of care to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers." This means taking every necessary step to protect workers from possible hazards that could arise on the job.

In determining what is reasonably practicable, a PCBU must weigh a range of factors, including:

• the nature and degree of the risk
• available technology and methods for eliminating or minimising the risk
• cost of implementing measures to control the risk
• whether the action would be effective in preventing the risk

Persons may mean one or more than one individual. A PCBU can refer to:

• a corporation
• the Commonwealth
• a state or territory
• an individual who carries out business undertakings
• a corporate body
• a contractor at a workplace

Health and Safety Representatives

A health and safety representative holds one of the most influential positions regarding safety at work. This person gets elected or appointed by co-workers to represent their interests in matters relating to health and safety.

Safe Work Australia defines health and safety representatives as "workers elected to represent the health and safety interests of workers." Safety representatives help maintain healthy working conditions by identifying and resolving concerns, working alongside management to ensure the workplace stays safe while workers understand their rights and responsibilities.

Election of Health and Safety Representatives

Law doesn't require businesses and organisations to have HSRs, but they become necessary once work groups request them. Work groups and PCBUs decide how the election for an HSR will proceed.

Work groups are collections of workers formed to elect a representative who speaks on their behalf. An election becomes unnecessary if the number of nominees matches available HSR vacancies.

Elections may proceed with assistance from a union or other organisation if most workers agree. The PCBU must provide resources, facilities, and services required for the polls, and bears responsibility for ensuring elections remain fair and correct.

PCBU Duties

Every PCBU must provide a healthy and safe workplace. However, HSRs play an essential role representing members of their work group and raising issues for the PCBU's attention.

Powers and responsibilities of HSRs include:

• representing and consulting with their work group on health and safety matters
• investigating work, health, and safety (WHS) concerns
• seeking out WHS information for developing strategies that mitigate risk
• issuing a provisional improvement notice (PIN)
• directing unsafe work to cease
• monitoring the PCBU's response to a provisional improvement notice (PIN)
• inspecting their workplace at any time
• promoting a positive health and safety culture in their workplace
• request for establishing a health and safety committee (HSC)

All PCBUs remain obliged to support HSRs in their WHS roles, which include:

• consulting with HSRs on WHS matters
• allowing them access to information on hazards at the workplace
• providing resources and facilities so they can perform their functions
• ensuring they aren't disadvantaged for taking on the role and permitting them to accompany an inspector during an inspection

HSR Training

HSRs are entitled to undertake approved training that helps them perform their duties. Content of HSR training courses must cover the following:

• the role, powers, and functions of an HSR under the model WHS laws
• how to identify and assess risk and control measures in consultation with others
• investigation processes
• effective workplace consultation, including how to represent workers' views
• the role of health and safety committees
• procedures for issuing improvement notices and directing unsafe work to cease

Health and Safety Committees (HSC)

Another obligation of a PCBU involves consulting with workers about safety risk and opportunities for improvement. One way to achieve this is establishing a health and safety committee (HSC).

An HSC offers a more formal way to consult on health and safety matters, providing an opportunity for the PCBU and workers to discuss and develop ways to improve conditions at work.

An HSC must conduct a meeting at least once every three months, though members can request more frequent gatherings. Members should weigh how often the committee meets by considering:

• how much work the HSC has to do
• where the workplace is located
• how many workers are at the workplace, and what they do
• what kind of hazards exist at the workplace

Safety committees form when two or more employers operating at the same workplace agree to establish one, or when an inspector directs a worker to create one. The committee should consist of equal numbers of management and worker representatives, with member count depending on organisation size.

Roles and Responsibilities of an HSC

A health and safety committee (HSC) aims to promote a safe work environment through:

• developing and implementing health and safety standards, rules and procedures
• identifying potential hazards and developing control measures to mitigate risk
• providing valuable feedback to employers on the effectiveness of health and safety measures
• promoting communication and co-operation between workers and employers

Workplace Health and Safety Officers (WHSOs)

A safety officer leads a proactive approach for a business to meet its WHS duties. Management appoints safety officers to support HSRs. An officer is someone who makes or participates in making essential decisions for a company, and can significantly affect its financial position.

HSR is the person who speaks for workers on safety issues, while a safety officer comes from management and helps ensure everyone follows safety procedures at the workplace.

Roles and Responsibilities

Responsibility of the WHS officer involves ensuring the business meets all its workplace health and safety duties. This includes:

• ensuring that safe work systems are in place to protect workers from harm
• determining if the WHS measures in place remain effective or not
• making decisions on money and resources that allow the business to implement WHS measures

Other WHS Professionals

OHS professionals can assist with a range of things, such as:

• reviewing your health and safety systems
• assessing risk and developing control measures
• conducting safety audits
• developing and delivering health and safety training
• providing expert advice on a range of health and safety topics

Beyond HSRs, HSCs, and WHSOs, other safety roles exist across the workplace. These include:

WHS consultants — experts who advise businesses on how to comply with workplace health and safety laws. Companies hire them for expert knowledge and guidance on safety procedures and protocols.

Safety auditors — responsible for conducting audits of an organisation's health and safety management system to identify strengths and opportunities for improvement.

Safety inspectors — usually government agents authorised to enter workplaces, investigate complaints, and audit workplaces, machines, or equipment. They ensure government rules, regulations, and industry standards regarding occupational health and safety compliance get met.

Occupational hygienists — trained professionals who specialise in assessing and managing risk to human health. They identify hazards and develop strategies to mitigate them.

Ergonomists — study efficiency within work environments and design or modify tasks to fit the worker. Their aim is eliminating discomfort and injury risk arising from work, considering physical limitations, capabilities, and the nature of the job.

Risk managers — responsible for developing and implementing an organisation's risk management policy and procedures. They work with senior management to identify and assess risk, develop mitigation plans, and monitor controls.

Floor wardens — responsible for coordinating evacuation procedures during an emergency.

First aiders — trained in first aid, capable of providing primary medical care (e.g., CPR) until more advanced help arrives.

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Please note that the above information is provided as a comment only and should not be relied on as professional, legal or financial advice.