Changes to the NSW Work Health and Safety Regulation 2017 came into effect on 1 October 2022 and impose a proactive duty on directors to exercise due diligence to ensure that the organisation identifies, manages, eliminates or mitigates psychosocial hazards & risk to psychological health at work.
Most other states & territories have adopted similar legislation or have indicated an intention to do so.
This means that every director must take reasonable steps to:
- Actively seek out relevant knowledge and understanding of the hazards and risks to health and safety associated with the organisation’s operations
- Make sure that the organisation is allocating appropriate financial and human resources to develop systematic health and safety management processes to eliminate or minimise psychosocial risks that affect psychological health & safety as far as reasonably practicable
- Have a method to stay up to date on WHS matters affecting the organisations, including psychosocial hazards.
Directors need to stay curious & proactively seek all information that is relevant to health and safety. When information is received, asking questions to verify the credibility and comprehensiveness of that information is critical.
Rely’s Managing Psychosocial Hazards checklist suggests some practical steps you can take to build a safe, respectful and inclusive workplace culture.
Additional resources
- Download Rely’s Psychological Safety Guide, co-authored by Kirsty Harvison and Dr Jane Burns
- Watch Your Call’s webinar on Psychological Safety at Work
- Amendment of Work Health and Safety Regulation 2017
