Everyone in the workplace, including those working on a farm, have duties under work health and safety (WHS) laws.

The Work Health and Safety Act 2020 (WHS Act) and associated Work Health and Safety (General) Regulations 2022 came into effect in March 2022 and so if you haven’t already, it’s a good time to check that your safety processes are up-to-date. It is useful to involve family members and workers so everyone becomes familiar with identifying risks.

Work health and safety (WHS) laws require that reasonably practicable controls are put in place to protect everyone at a workplace. The term ‘reasonably practicable’ refers to what could be reasonably done at a particular time and involves considering the likelihood of exposure to a hazard, degree of harm, what is known about the hazards, and ways of eliminating or minimising risk.

WHS Act and regulations

Main responsibilities and duties

Under WHS laws, there are specific duties for:

• a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU)
• an officer and
• a WHS service provider

Learn more about the main responsibilities and duties in agriculture. 

Codes of practice

Codes of practice provide detailed information on how you can achieve the standards required under WHS laws. Codes of practice do not replace the law, but can help you understand what you need to do to comply with specific regulations and provide a healthy and safe workplace.

Download approved codes of practice.

Looking for more guidance?

WorkSafe have put together guides, information sheets, videos and animations to help you understand WHS laws.

WorkSafe publications and resources.