Health and Safety Representatives
Health and Safety Representatives and Consultation
The booklet Information For Health and Safety Representatives gives more detail on consultation, the rights roles and responsibilities of HSRs.
Health and Safety Representatives and Consultation
A safe workplace is more easily achieved when employers and employees talk to each other about potential problems, and work together to find solutions. While providing a safe and healthy workplace is the legal responsibility of employers, it is also essential that decisions around Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) include the involvement of staff and Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) as well as volunteers and contractors. Consultation with staff on OHS issues is essential to ensure employers comply with their obligations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (OHS) and allow staff to give valuable input into safety in their workplace.
In any organisation, employees are best able to identify the gaps in a workplace that can contribute to poor occupational health and safety. Consultation with staff also allows an employer to pick up on more intangible issues such as workplace stress or bullying.
What matters must be consulted about?
The OHS Act 2004 states that employers must consult on the following health and safety matters with those who are (or are likely to be) directly affected:
identifying or assessing hazards or risks
making decisions on how to control risks
making decisions about the adequacy of facilities for employee welfare (such as dining facilities, change rooms, toilets or first aid)
making decisions about procedures to:
o resolve health and safety issues
o consult with employees on health and safety
o monitor employees health and workplace conditions
provide information and training
determining the membership of any health and safety committee
when proposing changes that may affect employees health and safety, such as changes to:
o the workplace
o plant, substances or other things used in the workplace
o the work performed at the workplace
What does consultation involve?
Consultation should be a two-way exchange between employers and employees that involves:
sharing information about health and safety,
giving employees a reasonable opportunity to express their views, and
taking those views into account.
Employees can be consulted in a variety of ways including by setting up a health and safety committee or by holding regular staff meetings. If employees have elected a health and safety representative (HSR), the HSR must also be involved in consultation.
Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs)
For many workplaces, the election of a Health and Safety Representative is a good way of communicating staff concerns about workplace health and safety back to managers and supervisors. The OHS Act 2004 recognises the important role HSRs play in representing the health and safety interests of employees and it is widely acknowledged that they make a real difference in having issues addressed and achieving better health and safety outcomes. It is for this reason that the role of workplace HSRs should be encouraged, supported and protected.
Therefore by taking on the role HSR, employees are giving an invaluable contribution to improving the health and welfare of employees within their workplace.
In the AOD sector, workers often face demands for increased productivity, through increased workloads and demands on services. Employees are also often required work in situations where they are in uncontrolled environments (such as outreach work) and it is for this reason that the role of Health and Safety Representatives is so crucial. HSRs give employees the opportunity to feed information and concerns about their working environments back to managers and supervisors that they may be unable to do themselves.
The powers of a Health and Safety Representative include the right to:
Speak up and act on behalf of the employees they represent on OHS issues;
Monitor the health and safety actions taken by the employer;
Look into anything that might be a risk to the health and safety of the employees they represent;
Attempt to resolve issues with the employer on any health and safety issue that could affect staff;
Inspect any part of the workplace;
Inspect the workplace immediately if there is an incident or a serious risk;
Accompany a WorkSafe inspector during an inspection
Request that a health and safety committee be set up
Issue a Provisional Improvement Notice (PIN)
Employers are also obliged under the act to allow HSRs to attend approved training, including paying for the cost of training taken on paid work time.
In any organisation, employees are best able to identify the gaps in a workplace that can contribute to poor occupational health and safety. Consultation with staff also allows an employer to pick up on more intangible issues such as workplace stress or bullying.
What matters must be consulted about?
The OHS Act 2004 states that employers must consult on the following health and safety matters with those who are (or are likely to be) directly affected:
identifying or assessing hazards or risks
making decisions on how to control risks
making decisions about the adequacy of facilities for employee welfare (such as dining facilities, change rooms, toilets or first aid)
making decisions about procedures to:
o resolve health and safety issues
o consult with employees on health and safety
o monitor employees health and workplace conditions
provide information and training
determining the membership of any health and safety committee
when proposing changes that may affect employees health and safety, such as changes to:
o the workplace
o plant, substances or other things used in the workplace
o the work performed at the workplace
What does consultation involve?
Consultation should be a two-way exchange between employers and employees that involves:
sharing information about health and safety,
giving employees a reasonable opportunity to express their views, and
taking those views into account.
Employees can be consulted in a variety of ways including by setting up a health and safety committee or by holding regular staff meetings. If employees have elected a health and safety representative (HSR), the HSR must also be involved in consultation.
Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs)
For many workplaces, the election of a Health and Safety Representative is a good way of communicating staff concerns about workplace health and safety back to managers and supervisors. The OHS Act 2004 recognises the important role HSRs play in representing the health and safety interests of employees and it is widely acknowledged that they make a real difference in having issues addressed and achieving better health and safety outcomes. It is for this reason that the role of workplace HSRs should be encouraged, supported and protected.
Therefore by taking on the role HSR, employees are giving an invaluable contribution to improving the health and welfare of employees within their workplace.
In the AOD sector, workers often face demands for increased productivity, through increased workloads and demands on services. Employees are also often required work in situations where they are in uncontrolled environments (such as outreach work) and it is for this reason that the role of Health and Safety Representatives is so crucial. HSRs give employees the opportunity to feed information and concerns about their working environments back to managers and supervisors that they may be unable to do themselves.
The powers of a Health and Safety Representative include the right to:
Speak up and act on behalf of the employees they represent on OHS issues;
Monitor the health and safety actions taken by the employer;
Look into anything that might be a risk to the health and safety of the employees they represent;
Attempt to resolve issues with the employer on any health and safety issue that could affect staff;
Inspect any part of the workplace;
Inspect the workplace immediately if there is an incident or a serious risk;
Accompany a WorkSafe inspector during an inspection
Request that a health and safety committee be set up
Issue a Provisional Improvement Notice (PIN)
Employers are also obliged under the act to allow HSRs to attend approved training, including paying for the cost of training taken on paid work time.
The booklet Information For Health and Safety Representatives gives more detail on consultation, the rights roles and responsibilities of HSRs.
