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In Western Australia, the law requires employers to provide a high standard of safety and health at their workplaces and ensure, as far as practicable, that employees are not injured or harmed because of their work.
As an employer, you have a responsibility to provide and maintain, as far as practicable, a safe working environment for your workers, under Section 19(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 (OSH Act). This is called the employer’s ‘duty of care’. This includes:
You must also ensure that the safety and health of people who are not your workers (ie non-employees) is not affected by the work, a hazard or the system of work. This duty, under section 21 of the OSH Act, applies where there are visitors, volunteers, work experience students or any other people at the workplace.
As an employer, you also have a responsibility to inform all your employees about:
Under the OSH Act, as an employer, you have other duties. You must:
Where you receive a report from an employee about hazards or any injury or harm to health, you must within reasonable time after receiving the report:
More information on your general ‘duty of care’ can be found in the guidance note, General duty of care in Western Australian workplaces.
You will also have to meet specific requirements under the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations 1996 in relation to particular hazards, work activities, plant, registrations and licences and the working environment. For more information, you could refer to these regulations or search for information on specific hazards or safety topics on this website.
Some of the general ‘duty of care’ provisions in the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 (OSH Act) are qualified by the words ‘so far as is practicable’.
This applies to general duties for employers, self-employed people, people with control of workplaces, designers, manufacturers, importers, suppliers, erectors and installers. These people are expected to take measures that are practicable.
‘Practicable’ has a particular meaning in the OSH Act. The definition can be found in section 3(1) (with other definitions) and is explained in more detail below.
If something is practicable, it is ‘reasonably practicable’, taking into account the following factors ie:
In other words, to be practicable, something must not only be capable of being done, it must also be reasonable in light of the factors mentioned above. The risk and severity of injury must be weighed up against the overall cost and feasibility of the safeguards needed to remove the risk.
Each of the above factor is considered in light of what a reasonable person in the position of the duty holder would have known.
More information on the meaning of practicable and how examples of how it applies can be found in the guidance note, General duty of care in Western Australian workplaces.
Part of the employer’s ‘duty of care’ includes providing employees with instruction, training and supervision so you are able to work safely. This must include a general induction and a job specific induction.
A job specific induction must provide information and training on:
A general induction to the workplace safety and health arrangements must be provided and include information and training on:
WorkSafe provides a range of checklists that can be used for inductions. These include an induction checklist for new and young workers and checklists for contract workers and work experience students.
These checklists may be adapted to include relevant workplace issues. For example, an induction for an employee at a warehouse or retail workplace may need a greater level of induction on manual tasks, as many injuries can arise with this type of work.
Providing a good safety and health induction can influence employees’ attitudes towards safety and health by providing a good first impression of its importance at the workplace.
The law in Western Australia requires the employer to take into account the individual needs of employees to ensure they are able to work safely. This means the employer must consider the appropriate format for your safety and health training, instruction and information so you are best able to understand them.
For example, for workers from a migrant or non-English speaking background, the information, instruction and training may need to be provided in other languages so workers can fully understand what is required.
Further information
Where it is not practicable to avoid the presence of hazards, your employer has a duty to provide adequate personal protective clothing and equipment (PPE) without any cost to you. This applies whether you are an employee at the workplace or a labour hire employee.
Examples of PPE are:
If you require PPE different to what is being provided by your employer, for example prescription safety glasses instead of over glasses or brand name safety boots, consult your employer about who will pay the difference in cost.
Where your employer has provided you with PPE, they must inform you on:
Where your employer has directed you to use PPE, you must:
PPE is often used in conjunction with other control measures, and should not be the only way of controlling a hazard. Ask your employer if you are not clear about all the controls in place to eliminate or minimise a hazard.
As an employer, there are different ways you can encourage workers to assist in ensuring safety and health at your workplace. For example, you can do this by:
Every worker will have some responsibility for safety and health at the workplace, even if it is simply to meet the employees' ‘duty of care’ under the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984. The workplace processes should include checks to ensure these responsibilities are understood and taken seriously.
You could also look at establishing a formal safety and health management system so you have some confidence that all aspects of it are being addressed at your workplace. Refer to the WorkSafe Plan information and workbook, which provides information and examples on desirable safety and health management practices, including management commitment, and how to identify strengths and weaknesses in your workplace’s management of safety and health.
You could look at the process for applying for a WorkSafe Plan certificate of achievement or use the information and workbook for ideas on how to implement a workplace safety and health management system and improve your workplace’s safety and health performance.
The WorkSafe Western Australia Commissioner can review Improvement Notices, Prohibition Notices and Provisional Improvement Notices and grant exemptions to specified Occupational Safety and Health Regulations.
More information on:
Some matters arising under the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 and the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations 1996 may be referred to the Occupational Safety and Health Tribunal for a determination.
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