WHS Due Diligence for CEO’s, Directors and Managers – TAS edition
Topic: Duty to manage psychosocial risks
The WHS Act defines ‘health’ to mean both physical and psychological health.
The WHS Act section 19
The PCBU must manage risks, to both physical and psychological health, so far as is reasonably practicable.
Examples of psychosocial hazards (More examples in the course handbook)
High or low job demands, hazardous environments, bullying, sexual harassment, poor support from managers or co-workers, workplace aggression., poor procedural justice.
The WHS Regulation sections 55A – D,
These sections require a PCBU to manage psychosocial risks and to have regard to a range of matters when determining control measures to implement, including, but not limited to:
- How psychosocial hazards and risks may interact and combine to create harm; and
- The sources of psychosocial risk, including the design of the work, design and layout of the workplace, how work is organised, workplace behaviours & interactions and other matters.
Resources
There are a range of tools available from various regulators to assist duty holders in meeting their obligations including, but not limited to:
- SafeWork Australia – Code of Practice – Psychosocial hazards in the workplace
- WorkSafe TAS website
- SafeWork Australia – Principles of Good Work Design: a WHS Handbook
- People at Work – Psychosocial Risk Assessment Survey Tool
- Fair Work Commission – What does “reasonable management action carried out in a reasonable manner” mean?
These resources are regularly updated and new ones introduced. A PCBU should regularly check the regulators website to stay up to date.
Ensuring a systematic process to manage psychosocial hazards and risks will help the PCBU and duty holders meet their WHS responsibilities. It will also decrease organisational disruptions and costs resulting from work-related harm and may improve WHS and broader organisational performance and productivity.