WHS Legislation & Duty of Care
Work Health and Safety (WHS) legislation forms the legal foundation for construction safety in Australia. This topic covers the harmonised WHS Act and Regulations, duty of care obligations for PCBUs and workers, consultation requirements, penalties for non-compliance, and the role of SafeWork Australia, state regulators, and WHS inspectors.
Study Guide: WHS Legislation & Duty of Care
Review these sample questions before starting the practice test.
Q1: What is the primary legislation governing workplace health and safety in Australia?
- A. Fair Work Act 2009
- B. Environmental Protection Act 1994
- C. Building Code of Australia
- D. Work Health and Safety Act 2011 β
The Work Health and Safety (WHS) Act 2011 is the primary legislation establishing duties for ensuring health and safety at work across most Australian jurisdictions.
Q2: Under the WHS Act, what does PCBU stand for?
- A. Principal Contractor for Building Units
- B. Primary Controller of Building and Utilities
- C. Professional Construction and Building Union
- D. Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking β
PCBU stands for Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking. Under s 19 of the WHS Act 2011, a PCBU has the primary duty to ensure the health and safety of workers.
Q3: Who has the primary duty of care under the WHS Act 2011?
- A. Workers only
- B. Health and Safety Representatives
- C. The local council
- D. The Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU) β
Under s 19 of the WHS Act 2011, the PCBU has the primary duty of care to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers and others.
Q4: What does "reasonably practicable" mean under the WHS Act?
- A. Whatever is cheapest
- B. Whatever is most convenient for the employer
- C. Only what is required by insurance policies
- D. What is reasonably able to be done considering likelihood and degree of harm, knowledge, availability, and cost β
Section 18 of the WHS Act defines "reasonably practicable" as what is reasonably able to be done, considering the likelihood and degree of harm, what is known about the hazard, availability of controls, and cost proportionality.
Q5: Under the WHS Act, which duty applies specifically to workers?
- A. Provide all safety equipment at their own cost
- B. Conduct annual site audits
- C. Write Safe Work Method Statements
- D. Take reasonable care for their own health and safety and that of others β
Section 28 of the WHS Act requires workers to take reasonable care for their own health and safety and that their acts or omissions do not adversely affect others.
Q6: A Health and Safety Representative (HSR) is elected by whom?
- A. The site manager
- B. The PCBU
- C. The workers in the work group they represent β
- D. SafeWork Australia
Under the WHS Act 2011, HSRs are elected by the workers in their designated work group. They represent workers on health and safety matters.
Q7: What is a notifiable incident under the WHS Act?
- A. Any minor first-aid injury
- B. A near miss that no one witnessed
- C. A worker arriving late to a shift
- D. The death of a person, a serious injury or illness, or a dangerous incident β
Under s 35 of the WHS Act 2011, notifiable incidents include the death of a person, serious injury or illness, or a dangerous incident. These must be reported to the regulator immediately.
Q8: How soon must a notifiable incident be reported to the WHS regulator?
- A. Within 7 days
- B. Within 48 hours
- C. Immediately after becoming aware of the incident β
- D. At the next scheduled safety meeting
Section 38 of the WHS Act requires that notifiable incidents be reported to the regulator immediately after the PCBU becomes aware of the incident.
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