The primary duty of care in the model WHS Act requires a PCBU to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, workers and other persons are not exposed to risks to their psychological or physical health and safety.
Watch Safe Work Australia CEO, Michelle Baxter deliver a keynote presentation at Comcare’s national forum on sexual harassment.
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Under the model WHS laws, a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) must manage the risk of psychosocial hazards in the workplace.
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Professor Parker discusses the principles of good work design, why they are important, and how we can use them to make workplaces safer and improve workers’ wellbeing.
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This infographic shows how to apply the four-step risk management process to manage psychosocial hazards.
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Workplace bullying remains a serious problem in many Australian workplaces, costing individuals and organisations in poor productivity, absenteeism and mental stress.
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While we’ve come a long way in ensuring physical health and safety is a normal part of how we work, our next challenge is to ensure mental health is given the same priority.
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This infographic shows how to apply the risk management process to manage psychosocial hazards
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When it comes to psychological health and safety, employers can often be confused about their responsibilities. They want to know how to address the legal requirements, what best practice is, and how they can address the risks.
/resources-and-publications/video-and-audio/psychological-health-and-safety-workplace-national-guide
Resources on workplace sexual harassment
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To meet your duties to ensure health and safety, you, as the PCBU, must eliminate or minimise the risk of sexual and gender-based harassment so far as is reasonably practicable. You can do this by applying the risk management in the same way you do for other hazards.
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Most jobs involve some risk of sexual and gender-based harassment. This is a hazard and can cause both psychological and physical harm.
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Resources on workplace mental health
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Psychosocial risks should be managed using the risk management process.
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Everyone has a role in managing psychosocial risks. These duties are set out in the model WHS Act and model WHS Regulations.
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Workers’ compensation coverage of psychological injuries
Workers’ compensation is available for physical and psychological injury and disease.
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In 2018, the Australian Senate conducted an inquiry into the prevention, investigation and prosecution of industrial deaths in Australia, which highlighted the devastating personal, social and economic impacts on bereaved families.
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Workplace violence and aggression is when a person is abused, threatened or assaulted at the workplace or while they’re working.
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Most jobs involve some risk of sexual and gender-based harassment. This is a hazard and can cause both psychological and physical harm.
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Sitting for long periods of time is common in Australian workplaces.
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Working alone or remotely can increase the health and safety risks of any job. Workers may be isolated from support and assistance because of where or when they’re working, or the nature of their work they are doing.
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Most jobs involve some psychosocial hazards. These are the hazards that can harm workers’ mental health.
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Workplace bullying is repeated, unreasonable behaviour directed at a worker (or group of workers).
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This is the sixth annual national statement issued by Safe Work Australia to identify trends in psychosocial health and safety and bullying in Australian workplaces.
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This information sheet provides guidance for persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU), such as employers, about duties under work health and safety (WHS) laws and how to manage the risks of family and domestic violence at the workplace.
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This information sheet provides advice for workers about duties under the model work health and safety (WHS) laws and what to do if workers experience workplace violence or aggression.
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This information sheet provides simple and practical guidance to support small business meet their work health and safety (WHS) duties to manage health and safety risks from workplace violence and aggression.
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This guide provides information for persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU), such as employers, on how to manage the risk of violence and aggression in the workplace, including gendered violence.
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This information sheet provides advice for workers about duties under WHS laws and what to do if workers experience or witness sexual harassment at the workplace.
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This information sheet provides simple, clear and practical guidance to support small businesses meet their work health and safety (WHS) duties to manage health and safety risks from sexual harassment.
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Recommendation 18 of the 2012 House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Employment report, Workplace Bullying: “We just want it to stop”, requested an annual update of trends in workers’ compensation data relating to psychosocial health and safety generally and workpla
/resources-and-publications/statistical-reports/psychosocial-health-and-safety-and-bullying-australian-workplaces-5th-edition
This fact sheet has been prepared as part of the 2018 National Action Plan on Endometriosis. It aims to increase awareness of the prevalence and impact this chronic disease has on workers and its potential impact on workplace safety.
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Recommendation 18 of the 2012 House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Employment report, Workplace Bullying: “We just want it to stop”, requested an annual update of trends in workers’ compensation data relating to psychosocial health and safety generally and workpla
/resources-and-publications/statistical-reports/psychosocial-health-and-safety-and-bullying-australian-workplaces-4th-edition-summary-findings
Recommendation 18 of the 2012 House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Employment report, Workplace Bullying: “We just want it to stop”, requested an annual update of trends in workers’ compensation data relating to psychosocial health and safety generally and workpla
/resources-and-publications/statistical-reports/psychosocial-health-and-safety-and-bullying-australian-workplaces-4th-edition
This framework provides practical and evidence-based guidance to assist workers' compensation insurers and claims managers to better support workers with a psychological injury.
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This report investigates the predictors of early retirement among middle-aged workers, with particular interest in the influence of unfavourable psychosocial working conditions like high job demands, low job control and high perceived job insecurity.
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This report examines the similarities and differences between psychological and physical claims.
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This report provides an analysis of the Survey results and includes a comparative literature review on Return To Work after psychological injury.
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Why has this research been done?
- To better understand the prevalence of workplace bullying and harassment in Australian workplaces and to identify workplace risk factors associated with the occurrence of bullying and harassment.
What did we find?
- B
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Why has this research been done?
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Sickness absence and presenteeism have a direct impact on organisation productivity
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Recommendation 18 of the 2012 House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Employment report, Workplace Bullying: “We just want it to stop”, requested an annual update of trends in workers’ compensation data relating to psychosocial health and safety generally and workpla
/resources-and-publications/statistical-reports/psychosocial-health-and-safety-and-bullying-australian-workplaces-3rd-edition-summary-findings
Recommendation 18 of the 2012 House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Employment report, Workplace Bullying: “We just want it to stop”, requested an annual update of trends in workers’ compensation data relating to psychosocial health and safety generally and workpla
/resources-and-publications/statistical-reports/psychosocial-health-and-safety-and-bullying-australian-workplaces-3rd-edition
The publication provides a concise and factual statistical profile of mental disorders as compensated by Australian workers’ compensation schemes. It shows statistics on how many Australians are awarded a mental disorder claim each year to allow estimation of societal and system impacts.
/resources-and-publications/statistical-reports/work-related-mental-disorders-profile-2015
Recommendation 18 of the 2012 House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Employment report, Workplace Bullying: “We just want it to stop”, requested an annual update of trends in workers’ compensation data relating to psychosocial health and safety generally and workpla
/resources-and-publications/statistical-reports/psychosocial-health-and-safety-and-bullying-australian-workplaces-2nd-edition
This guide was developed and published prior to amendments to the model WHS Regulations in 2022. The guide is an archived document and is provided for background only.
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Workplace bullying is a risk to health and safety. It can occur wherever people work together in all types of workplaces. It is best dealt with by taking steps to prevent it from occurring and responding quickly if it does occur.
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/resources-and-publications/statistical-reports/relationship-between-work-characteristics-wellbeing-depression-and-workplace-bullying-summary-report
The report 'The relationship between work characteristics, wellbeing, depression and workplace bullying' describes the early findings from a project conducted as a partnership between Safe Work Australia and The Australian National University.
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If you’re a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU), this model Code of Practice provides practical guidance on how to effectively consult with workers about work health and safety and meet your duties under the work health and safety (WHS) Act.
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About this seminar
In this video, registered nurse Tiffany Plummer, Secretary of the NSW Health Services Union Gerard Hayes, and Petrice Wallis from WorkSafe Victoria, discuss the wicked problem of occupational violence in emergency departments.
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