Work Health and Safety Regulation Requires an Assessment of Psychosocial Risks

In a significant move towards prioritising mental health in the workplace, businesses in NSW, QLD, WA and TAS are now explicitly mandated to address psychosocial risks to worker health and safety.?

These changes made on October 1, 2022, formalise the obligations specified in the Code of Practice on Managing Psychosocial Hazards at Work, which was introduced by SafeWork NSW the previous year.?

Overview of the new requirements for persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU)

Under the provisions concerning "psychosocial risk" within the WHS Regulation, businesses and undertakings (PCBUs) must implement control measures to:

1. Eliminate psychosocial risks to the extent reasonably practicable.
2. If complete elimination is not reasonably possible, minimise these risks to the extent reasonably practicable.

A?psychosocial risk?is a risk to the health or safety of a worker or other person arising from a "psychosocial hazard."

Psychosocial hazards?encompass any risk that may lead to psychological harm and originate from or pertaining to:

• The design or management of work.
• The work environment.
• Plant at a workplace.
• Interactions or behaviours within the workplace.

The Code provides illustrative examples of common psychosocial hazards, such as:

• Role overload or underload.
• Inadequate support from supervisors, managers, or co-workers.
• Role conflicts, ambiguity, and low job control.
• Insufficient reward and recognition.
• Exposure to traumatic events.
• Workplace conflicts or poor relationships among workers.
• Bullying, harassment, and workplace violence.
• Inadequate procedural justice.
• Hazardous physical work environments.
• Remote or isolated work due to job location, timing, or nature.

Managing Psychosocial Risks Going Forward:

The specific control measures required by the WHS Regulation will vary depending on the workplace and can be either organisation-wide or tailored to individual workers.

However, PCBUs are expected to consider several relevant factors when determining which control measures to implement:

• Duration, frequency, and severity of workers' exposure to psychosocial hazards.
• Interactions between different psychosocial hazards.
• Work design, including demands and tasks.
• Systems of work encompassing management, organisation, and support.
• Workplace design, layout, and environmental conditions.
• Plant, substances, and structures at the workplace.
• Workplace interactions and behaviours.
• Information, training, instruction, and worker supervision.

Ultimately, the employer should remain aware of how the workplace can impact the psychological well-being of workers and take all reasonably practicable steps to mitigate these risks.

Practical Steps to Achieve This Include:

• Regularly reviewing workloads and task allocations to ensure workers are neither overworked nor underworked, receive adequate support and training for challenging tasks, and have clear role requirements based on their skills, experience, and workload.
• Providing comprehensive induction and training for new workers to instil confidence in performing their roles.
• Offering ongoing training for supervisors on effective performance management, providing feedback, and equitable delegation of responsibilities.
• Consistently and fairly applying organisational policies, procedures, work allocations, and job performance management.
• Maintaining transparent and open communication channels between management and workers to build trust, instil confidence in escalation procedures, and promptly resolve issues among workers.
• Establishing a support system for workers regularly exposed to traumatic or emotionally intense situations or those interacting frequently with aggressive third parties.

• Conducting culture surveys to gauge staff satisfaction and identify areas for improvement in the employee experience across the organisation.
• Regularly engaging with at-risk groups to assess whether additional support is required.

By adhering to these guidelines, businesses can create a safer and more supportive work environment, proactively addressing psychosocial risks for the well-being of their employees.

If your business needs a personalised consultation covering team engagement, performance management, trust, conflict, and bullying/harassment, along with Psychological Safety Risk Assessment, contact UnKonventional today to get your free document.