Work Health and Safety Policy

Scope

This policy applies to all Department employees, contractors, and volunteers (Workers) while at a Department workplace, as well as visitors to its workplaces.

Workers outside Australia must adhere to this policy unless their jurisdiction has a higher standard. This policy does not create any contractual entitlements.

Annexure A to this policy lists the main NSW legislations specific to this policy and other supporting tools.

Annexure B to this policy sets out the main legislations specific to other countries where this policy applies.

Definitions

Hazard: A hazard is something that has the potential to cause harm. Hazards can be physical (for example a live wire) or mental.

Psychosocial hazard: A hazard that arises from, or relates to the design or management of work, work environment, workplace interactions or behaviours, and may cause psychological harm, regardless of it may also cause physical harm.

Accident: An accident is an event which causes an injury to a person, and/or damage to property and/or equipment.

Hazard identification: The process of recognising that a hazard exists and defining its characteristics. Different methods may be used to identify hazards including:

• observation
• consultation with workers, clients, or other users
• trial of models or prototypes
• review of technical standards and other information sources
• monitoring and measurement.

Notifiable incident: Is as defined in the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and as such means an incident involving the death of a person, a serious injury or illness of a person, or a dangerous incident as defined by the Act.

Incident: An event that has led to or could have led to an injury or illness. Incidents include near misses, accidents, and injuries or illness.

Injury or illness: The result of physical or mental harm.

Mental hazard: Is any hazard that has the potential to harm the mental wellbeing or mental health of the Worker (for example, work-related stress or bullying).

Reportable incident: An incident that is required to be reported to the regulator in Australia. Incidents that are reportable are death, serious injury or illness or a potentially dangerous incident.

Risk: A risk is the likelihood that death, injury, or illness might result because of a hazard.

WHS Committee: A group of WHS representatives in accordance with the Work Health and Safety Act (NSW) 2011 (WHS Act).

WHS: Work health and safety.

Workers: All Department employees, contractors, volunteers.

Workplace: Any place where Workers carry out work for the Department including any place where a worker goes or is likely to go, whilst undertaking Department duties.

Management of risks

The Department and Workers must ensure that:

1. health and safety risks are eliminated, so far as is reasonably practicable
2. if it is not reasonably practicable to eliminate risks to health and safety, to minimise those risks so far as is reasonably practicable. If risks cannot be brought into tolerance than they must be escalated to senior management, and ultimately to the Secretary, Department of Enterprise, Investment and Trade.

 Annexure C to this policy shows the pictorial representation of the various control options and their application. Refer to the DEIT Risk Management Framework for further guidance

Responsibilities

The following responsibilities support the purpose of this policy.

The Department’s responsibilities

1. Implement processes that aim to:
   • maintain a safe and healthy working environment
   • provide a WHS management system that includes the provision of appropriate information, training, instruction, and supervision
   • assess work-related risks
   • establish processes for reporting incidents, hazards and risks and responding in a timely way to that information
   • regularly review WHS systems
   • actively promote a systematic approach to managing workplace risks and injuries.
2. Encourage a culture of health and safety by:
   • establishing a consultative approach to managing WHS, including making WHS matters a standing agenda item for team meetings
   • engaging with Workers by sharing information, providing reasonable opportunities to contribute, and actively encouraging participation on WHS matters.

Leadership roles

The Department leadership team includes all senior executive staff and any person who is an officer for the purposes of the WHS Act. Department leaders are responsible for making sure that the Department complies with its health and safety obligations including:

• developing a good working knowledge of health and safety requirements and the Department’s health and safety management system
• understanding the Department’s critical hazards and risks and the steps that have been put in place to control those hazards and risks
• leading by example in taking health and safety seriously, attending all relevant training and complying with all health and safety policies and procedures
• appropriately managing, escalating, or reporting any health and safety risks that come to their attention and considering information about incidents, hazards and risks and respond in a timely way to that information
• engaging with their teams to ensure that Workers feels supported and enabled to perform their roles in a safe and healthy manner, including ensuring that all team members are appropriately trained and supervised
• actively participating in risk reviews, incident investigations and hazard control reviews as required, and regularly reviewing processes for which they are responsible to ensure that controls are operating effectively.

Workers

Workers are required to:

• use all equipment in an appropriate manner
• take reasonable care for their own health and safety
• ensure their working from home environment is safe and healthy
• take reasonable care that their acts or omissions do not adversely affect the health and safety of other persons
• comply, so far as they are reasonably able, and co-operate with any reasonable instruction, policy or procedure issued in relation to health and safety
• co-operate with and contribute to the WHS objectives in the planning process as required
• immediately report all hazards/incidents to the manager/supervisor
• report all incidents via the myCareer portal. 

Service providers, suppliers, visitors and other persons attending an the Department workplace are required to:

• take reasonable care for their own health and safety
• take reasonable care that their acts or omissions do not adversely affect the health and safety of other persons
• comply, so far as they are reasonably able, with any reasonable instruction given in relation to health and safety.

Consultation

So far as is reasonably practicable, the Department will consult with its Workers who are, or are likely to be, directly affected by a matter relating to work health or safety, as well as its WHS representatives and WHS Committee.

Incident recording and reporting

All Workers must report WHS incidents via the Incident/Hazard/Near Miss Form on the myCareer portal. In the event an incident is not a notifiable incident a worker must report the incident as soon as possible after the incident to the manager/ supervisor.

Any reportable incidents that occur in the Department workplaces in NSW must be notified to SafeWork NSW immediately after becoming aware of a notifiable incident. A notifiable incident includes a fatality, serious injury or illness or dangerous incident as defined by the WHS Act.

For further guidance, please refer to WHS Reporting and Investigations Policy.

Health and wellbeing resources

A range of resources are available to assist all Workers with health or wellbeing concerns.

Working from home

The obligations under this policy continue to apply to Workers when they perform work for the Department from their home. Workers working from home should undertake an assessment in line with the NSW Government’s checklist. If there are safety issues identified in relation to the Worker working from home, the worker should immediately contact their manager.

Policy breaches

A breach of this policy may lead to disciplinary action including termination of employment or engagement.

Individuals found to have committed an offence under any relevant legislation may also be subject to penalties as prescribed by the legislation.

Variation

The Department may vary this policy from time to time as appropriate.