General OHS Duties

Concept of ensuring health and safety (section 20 - Part 3)

Part 3 of the OHS Act imposes general OHS duties on:

• employers
• the self-employed
• employees
• designers
• manufacturers
• suppliers
• others.

Many general OHS duties require a person to meet the duties so far as is reasonably practicable. This requires the person:

• to eliminate risks to health and safety so far as is reasonably practicable, or
• if it is not reasonably practicable to eliminate risks to health and safety, reduce those risks so far as is reasonably practicable.

Health is defined in the OHS Act to include psychological health. This means that the duty to ensure health and safety requires duty holders to:

• eliminate risks to physical and psychological health and safety, or
• if it is not reasonably practical to eliminate these risks, to reduce these risks so far as is reasonably practicable.

Reasonably practicable (section 20 - Part 3)

The duty-holder must fulfill certain duties so far as is reasonably practicable. The term so far as is reasonably practicable limits the duty. What is reasonably practicable in a situation can be decided objectively. A person is to be judged by the standard of behaviour expected of a reasonable person in the duty-holder's position who has to comply with the same duty.

The duty-holder must do what a reasonable person who is:

• committed to the highest level of protection against health and safety risks
• proactively taking action to protect people’s health and safety.

To do this, duty-holders must put in place reasonably practicable measures. In working out what is reasonably practicable, the duty-holder must think about:

• the likelihood of a hazard or risk happening (the chance of a person being exposed to harm)
• the amount of harm that could be caused if the hazard or risk happened (the possible seriousness of injury or harm)
• what the person knows, or reasonably should know, about the hazard or risk and ways to eliminate or reduce that hazard or risk
• the availability and suitability of ways to eliminate or reduce the hazard or risk, and
• the cost of eliminating or reducing the hazard or risk.

Most of the general OHS duties under the OHS Act are to be met so far as is reasonably practicable.

Duties of employers

Duties of employers to employees and contractors (section 21)

The OHS Act requires all employers to provide and maintain a working environment that is safe and without risks to health. This duty is to be met so far as is reasonably practicable. It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.

Employers owe the same duty to independent contractors and their employees (including labour hire workers) who are working at the workplace, but only for matters that the employer has, or should have, control over.

The OHS Act sets out specific duties that employers must comply with as part of their general duty. These include:

• providing or maintaining plant and systems of work that are safe and without health risks, so far as is reasonably practicable
• taking action to eliminate or reduce the risks to health and safety connected with the use, handling, storage and transport of plant or substances, so far as is reasonably practicable
• maintaining workplaces under the employer’s management and control in a condition that is safe and without health risks, so far as is reasonably practicable
• providing suitable facilities at workplaces under their management and control for employees’ welfare so far as is reasonably practicable (for example, toilets, lockers and dining areas)
• providing employees with information, instruction, training or supervision needed for them to work safely and without risks to their health.

Duties of employers to monitor health and safety conditions (section 22)

Employers must:

• monitor the health of their employees and the conditions of the workplaces that they manage and control
• give employees health and safety information in suitable languages, so that employees can understand it
• keep records on the health and safety of their employees
• employ or engage the services of people suitably qualified in OHS to give advice to the employer on the health and safety of their employees.

These duties are to be met so far as is reasonably practicable. It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.

Duties of employers and self-employed to other people (sections 23-24)

Employers and the self-employed must ensure that they do not expose people other than employees to health and safety risks, so far as is reasonably practicable. This duty includes (but is not limited to) things like:

• protecting visitors to a workplace from health and safety risks
• protecting the public from construction or demolition work being done near roads and footpaths
• preventing hazardous substance emissions from a workplace.

It is an offence not to comply with this sections and penalties apply.

Duties of employees

Duties of employees (section 25)

While at work, employees must take reasonable care for their own safety and the safety of others who may be affected by their actions or omissions. They must also cooperate with any actions their employer takes to comply with the OHS Act and regulations.

An employee must not intentionally or recklessly interfere with or misuse anything provided at the workplace in the interests of health, safety and welfare.

It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.

When determining if an employee failed to take reasonable care, consideration must be given to what the employee knew about the circumstances.

Duties of those who manage or control workplaces

Duties of those who manage or control workplaces (section 26)

Any person or body that manages or controls a workplace must ensure that the workplace is safe and without risks to health, so far as is reasonably practicable. This includes entering and exiting the workplace.

This duty is limited to things that the person manages or controls.

Those who manage or control a workplace could include the employer, the occupier of the workplace, the owner of the workplace and others.

It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.

Duties of designers, manufacturers or suppliers

Duties of designers of plant (section 27)

A person who designs plant and knows (or should reasonably know) that the plant is going to be used at a workplace, must ensure that it is designed to be safe and without health risks when used as the designer of the plant intended. This duty is to be met so far as is reasonably practicable.

A designer of plant must do tests and examinations to ensure that, when used as the designer of the plant intended, the plant is safe and without health risks. Information must be made available to people the plant was designed for, and on request from people who use the plant. This information must include:

• the plant’s intended purpose
• test and examination results
• any conditions necessary to ensure that the plant is safe and without health risks when used as the designer of the plant intended.

It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.

Duties of designers of buildings and structures (section 28)

A person who designs any parts of buildings or structures and knows (or should reasonably know) that the building or structure (or part of a building or structure) is going to be used as a workplace, must ensure that it is designed to be safe and without health risks when used as the designer of the building or structure (or part of a building or structure) intended. This duty is to be met so far as is reasonably practicable.

Duties of manufacturers of plant and substances (section 29)

Manufacturers of plant or substances who know (or should reasonably know) that the plant or substance will be used at a workplace, must ensure that the plant or substance is safe and without health risks when used as the manufacturer intended. This duty is to be met so far as is reasonably practicable.

Manufacturers must carry out or arrange tests to ensure that the plant or substance is made to be safe and without health risks when used as the manufacturer intended.

Manufacturers must provide people with:

• information about the intended purposes of the plant or substance
• the results of tests and examinations for the plant or substance
• any conditions necessary to ensure that the plant or substance is safe and without health risks when used for its intended purpose.

They must give this information to:

• each person they supply with plant or a substance
• any person who uses or will use the plant or substance, if they request it.

It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.

Duties of suppliers of plant and substances (section 30)

Suppliers of plant or substances who know (or should reasonably know) that the plant or substance will be used at a workplace, must ensure that the plant or substance is safe and without health risks when used as the supplier intended.

This duty is to be met so far as is reasonably practicable.

Suppliers must give each information about the intended purposes of the plant or substance and any conditions for safely using the plant or substance for which the designer, manufacturer or supplier intended.

The supplier must give this information to:

• each person that they supply with the plant or substance
• any person who uses or will use the plant or substance, if they request it.

It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.

Duties of people installing, erecting or commissioning plant

Duties of people installing, erecting or commissioning plant (section 31)

A person who installs, erects or commissions plant who know (or should reasonably know) that the plant will be used at a workplace must ensure that nothing about the way that it is installed, erected or commissioned makes it unsafe to use or a risk to health. This duty is to be met so far as is reasonably practicable.

It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.

Duty to not recklessly endanger people at workplaces

Duty not to recklessly endanger people at workplaces (section 32)

It is an offence, without lawful excuse, to recklessly do things that places, or may place, another person at a workplace in danger of serious injury.

It is an offence not to comply with this section and penalties apply.