- Regulations are now in place that formally impose the requirement to manage the risks of psychosocial hazards in the workplace
- The regulations form part of the McGowan Government’s response to the report ‘Enough is Enough, sexual harassment against women in the FIFO mining industry’
- WorkSafe will initially take an educative approach to enforcement of the new regulations
New Work Health and Safety regulations for the control of psychosocial risks are now in place, making it illegal not to specifically deal with these risks in workplaces.
Western Australia has amended the work health and safety regulations for mines and general workplaces to implement model WHS regulations prepared by Safe Work Australia for implementation by Australia’s harmonised jurisdictions.
The work health and safety regulations now specifically deal with the identification of psychosocial risks and the appropriate control measures to manage those risks.
They require a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) to eliminate psychosocial risks, or to minimise them as much as is reasonably practical, putting them on the same footing as other significant hazards such as falls or operating machinery.
Businesses already have a duty to manage psychosocial risks under the primary duty of care in the Work Health and Safety Act 2020, and these new regulations serve to clarify existing duties rather than prescribing any further requirements.
As stated by Mines and Petroleum and Industrial Relations Minister Bill Johnston:
“Psychosocial hazards are just as important as physical hazards and must be dealt with in the workplace, so it’s an important step to have regulations specifically covering mental health issues.
“The regulations will help industry to better understand the requirements for managing psychosocial hazards, and will also ensure that the regulator – in the form of WorkSafe inspectors – can enforce those requirements.
“The Commission for Occupational Health and Safety has released various codes of practice to provide guidance on the laws, including the Code of practice – Psychosocial hazards in the workplace, which should be present in every WA workplace.”
