On 26 May 2011 Queensland Parliament became the first to pass the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (the WHS Act 2011). The WHS Act 2011 reflects the national model WHS Act with minor (but necessary) changes which enable it to operate within the Queensland jurisdiction.
If your not familiar with the content of the new act, you may access it through the Queensland Workplace Health and Safety Website at.
http://www.deir.qld.gov.au/workplace/law/harmonisationohslaws/index.htm
Under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 you will:
- have a completely new set of safety obligations (Duties) - If you are an ‘officer’ of a company (i.e. a director, secretary, general manager, chief executive officer, chief operations officer or chief financial officer), you will be obliged by law to exercise ‘due diligence’ to ensure your organisation does not breach OHS laws. This means you will have a legal responsibility to keep informed about health and safety matters, and act immediately on any OHS risks that are brought to your attention.
- be responsible for the health and safety of a lot more people – The new laws will place a requirement on anyone who conducts a business or undertaking to provide a safe workplace for all employees and workers affected by that business. And under the new laws, the definition of both ‘worker’ and ‘workplace’ will be broadened, most notably to include contractors and labour hire workers. In short, this means your duty of care will expand significantly.
- be exposed to a massive increase in penalties and fines – Under the proposed new laws, corporations face fines of up to $3 million per offence, while individuals face fines of $600,000 or five years in jail.
QSafe Solutions acknowledges Qld Division of Workplace Health and Safety and Master Builders as contributors to this article.
