The WHS Act 2011 in plain English. Six duties. State by state.
The model WHS Act 2011 is the foundation of Australian workplace safety law. Every PCBU owes a primary duty of care under s 19. Every officer owes a separate due-diligence duty under s 27. Every worker has a duty under ss 28-29. Every notifiable incident triggers ss 35-37 reporting. Every change requires consultation under ss 47-49. Below is each duty + the practical SMB implementation + the state variations.
Why this lives on XIntelliSync, not on a WHS-management-software vendor's blog
The WHS Act 2011 PCBU primary duty under section 19 is not a software problem — it's a duty-holder responsibility that sits with the directors, officers, and operational managers running the business. XIntelliSync does not manage your WHS Register, does not generate your risk assessments, does not track your officer-level WHS attestations, and does not surface high-risk work licence renewal dates. We're upfront about that boundary. What we DO: the payroll cluster generates the wage data that workers-comp insurers rate against. Everything else listed below is your WHS team's job, your WHS consultant's job, or dedicated WHS-management-system software's job.
Primary duty of care (PCBU)
Rule — A PCBU must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers (including contractors and labour-hire) and other persons (customers, visitors, members of the public) who may be affected by the work. Six matters in particular: (a) safe workplace, (b) safe plant and structures, (c) safe systems of work, (d) safe use, handling and storage of substances, (e) adequate facilities for welfare, (f) information / training / instruction / supervision.
In practice — Document risk assessments, control measures, training records, and supervision arrangements. The defence of "reasonably practicable" requires evidence — not just a written policy.
Officer due-diligence duty
Rule — An officer (director or senior officer who participates in decisions affecting the whole or substantial part of the business) must exercise due diligence to ensure the PCBU complies. Six elements: (a) keep up-to-date WHS knowledge, (b) understand operations and hazards, (c) ensure adequate resources and processes, (d) ensure information about incidents is received and considered, (e) ensure compliance verification, (f) verify the use of resources for compliance.
In practice — Officer-level personal liability — penalties up to ~$600,000 + 5 years imprisonment for category 1 offences. Document board-level WHS reporting + officer training + compliance attestations.
Worker duty of care
Rule — Workers must take reasonable care for their own health and safety, take reasonable care that their actions do not adversely affect others, comply with reasonable instructions, and cooperate with reasonable WHS policies and procedures.
In practice — Worker breaches can attract penalties up to ~$300,000 for category 1 offences. Most worker-side enforcement focuses on instruction compliance rather than personal injury.
Notifiable incident reporting
Rule — Notify the WHS regulator IMMEDIATELY of: (a) the death of a person, (b) a serious injury or illness (immediate inpatient hospital treatment, amputation, serious head/eye/spinal injury, loss of consciousness, exposure to substance requiring medical treatment), (c) a dangerous incident (uncontrolled escape, electric shock above thresholds, fall from height, structural collapse, fire/explosion). Written notification within 48 hours. Preserve the site until the inspector authorises disturbance.
In practice — Pre-drafted notification template + named on-call rotation + 24/7 phone access to state regulator hotline. Failure-to-notify penalty $10,000+ for individuals, $50,000+ for body corporates.
Consultation duties
Rule — A PCBU must, so far as is reasonably practicable, consult with workers who are or are likely to be directly affected by a WHS matter. Consultation must occur: when identifying hazards or assessing risk, when deciding on control measures, when proposing changes that may affect WHS, when developing or reviewing procedures, when making decisions about welfare facilities, when proposing health monitoring.
In practice — Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs), workgroup elections, consultation committees, toolbox talks. Document consultation evidence — agendas, minutes, attendance records, decision outcomes.
Discrimination + adverse action protection
Rule — A PCBU must not discriminate against, dismiss, or take adverse action against a worker because the worker has raised a WHS issue, made a complaint, or is an HSR. Reverse onus of proof — the PCBU must prove the adverse action was not for a prohibited reason.
In practice — Document performance management separately from any WHS complaint timeline. Train managers on the reverse onus. Whistleblower protection policies overlap with this provision.
Variations from the model law
Same model. Different jurisdictions.
NSW + QLD + SA + TAS + ACT + NT
Adopted the model WHS Act 2011 with minor jurisdictional variations. Penalties vary slightly between jurisdictions. NSW + QLD have introduced industrial manslaughter offences with maximum penalties of 25 years imprisonment for individuals.
Victoria
Operates under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (OHS Act 2004) — similar to model WHS but NOT identical. Notable differences: HRSGs replace HSRs, slightly different consultation requirements, different penalty structure. WorkSafe Victoria is the combined regulator for both safety and workers compensation.
Western Australia
Adopted the model WHS Act 2011 via WHS Act 2020 — commenced 31 March 2022. Mining sector retained its separate regime under the Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994. Industrial manslaughter offence introduced under WHS Act 2020.
Commonwealth jurisdiction
Commonwealth WHS Act 2011 covers Commonwealth public service employees and Commonwealth statutory authorities. Comcare is the regulator. Most relevant for businesses contracted to provide services to or for a Commonwealth agency.
Where to verify the source
Authoritative WHS Act sources.
Safe Work Australia — Model WHS Laws
National policy body's authoritative explainer of the model WHS Act + Regulation + Codes of Practice. Use as the harmonised reference; check state regulator sites for jurisdiction-specific variations.
AustLII — Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Cth)
Free public access to the Commonwealth WHS Act 2011. Most state Acts mirror this with local variations. Use as the legal source when responding to inspector notices, drafting WHS procedures, or training officers on s 27 due-diligence.
Safe Work Australia — Officer Due Diligence
Authoritative guidance on WHS Act s 27 officer due-diligence. Six elements + practical examples + case-law summaries. Required reading for every director and senior officer of a PCBU.
Safe Work Australia — Codes of Practice
All approved Codes of Practice — How to Manage WHS Risks, Hazardous Manual Tasks, Construction Work, Confined Spaces, Falls, etc. Codes are admissible as evidence in WHS proceedings as to what is reasonably practicable.
All 22+ industries served
Industry-specific WHS duty highlights.
Every industry has a different way that the s 19 primary duty + s 27 officer due-diligence + ss 35-37 notification land in day-to-day operations. The matrix below is the per-industry shorthand for what the WHS Act demands.
Construction
Construction Work Code of Practice + How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks
Industry duty — High-risk construction work (HRCW) requires a Safe Work Method Statement (SWMS) per WHS Reg 291. Principal contractor + work above 3m + asbestos + confined space + demolition all trigger SWMS. Site induction (white card) mandatory for every worker.
Healthcare
Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice + Managing Risks of Exposure to Bloodborne Pathogens (state-specific)
Industry duty — Manual handling (patient transfer) is the #1 cause of healthcare worker injury. Sharps injury exposure prevention + needlestick management procedures mandatory. Aggression + occupational violence from patients/families requires risk-control documentation.
Hospitality
Slips, Trips and Falls Code of Practice + Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice
Industry duty — Slip/trip/fall in wet kitchen + bar environment is highest-frequency injury. Burn/scald from cooking equipment + commercial dishwashers. Knife handling SOPs required. Late-night work + fatigue management for shift workers.
Retail
How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks + Robbery + Customer Aggression risk-control framework
Industry duty — Manual handling (stock movement, ladder use) primary risk. Customer aggression + armed robbery prevention requires documented procedures + duress alarms in cash-handling environments. Fitting room + change room privacy + safety considerations.
Professional Services / Consulting
How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks + Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice (state-specific)
Industry duty — Psychosocial hazards primary risk — workload, work-life balance, role conflict, lack of support. New code of practice on managing psychosocial hazards in force from 2023-2024 across most jurisdictions. Travel safety for client-site visits.
Digital / Tech / SaaS
How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks + Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice + Working with Visual Display Units guidance
Industry duty — Sedentary work + ergonomics primary risk. WHS duty extends to remote / hybrid workers — employer must provide guidance on home-office ergonomic setup. Psychosocial risk (always-on culture, on-call burnout) under scrutiny since 2023 right-to-disconnect amendments.
Finance / Mortgage Brokers
Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice + Robbery + Customer Aggression risk-control
Industry duty — Psychosocial risk primary — high-pressure sales targets, regulatory scrutiny stress, customer financial-distress exposure. Branch / office security against armed robbery (if cash-handling). Lone-working risks for mobile lenders / brokers.
Legal
Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice + Sexual Harassment Prevention (positive duty under SDA 2022)
Industry duty — Psychosocial hazards (workload, vicarious trauma, sexual harassment, bullying) primary risk. Positive duty to prevent sexual harassment under Sex Discrimination Act 2022 amendments — overlaps with WHS psychosocial duty. Junior-lawyer wellbeing increasingly regulated.
Childcare / Early Learning
Education and Care Services National Regulations 2011 + How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks
Industry duty — Manual handling (lifting children) + slips/trips/falls in playgrounds + infectious disease exposure. Educator-to-child ratios under National Regulations also serve WHS function — understaffing creates safety risk. WWCC + child-protection screening overlap with WHS.
Education / RTOs
Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice + Hazardous Manual Tasks + Schools Specific Codes
Industry duty — Psychosocial risk (workload, student behaviour management) primary. Manual handling for special-education + early-years roles. Excursion + off-site activity risk assessments mandatory. Student-on-teacher violence increasingly common.
Manufacturing
Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace + Hazardous Manual Tasks + Noise + Hazardous Chemicals
Industry duty — Plant + machinery primary risk — guarding, lockout-tagout, isolation procedures mandatory. Hearing conservation program required if noise above 85dB(A). Hazardous chemicals require SDS accessibility + emergency procedures.
Transport / Logistics
Heavy Vehicle National Law + Chain of Responsibility + Fatigue Management
Industry duty — Driver fatigue management critical — work + rest hours regulated under HVNL. Chain of Responsibility duties extend to consignors, packers, loaders, schedulers. Loading + unloading injury prevention. Lone-driver safety + emergency procedures.
Mining / Resources
Mines Safety and Inspection Act (state-specific) + Hazardous Manual Tasks + Confined Space Entry
Industry duty — Mining sector has its own safety regime in most states (separate from WHS Act). High-risk activities — underground work, drilling, blasting, plant operation. Mental health + remote-work fatigue (FIFO) increasingly regulated. Critical Risk Management Standards mandatory.
Agriculture / Primary Production
Tractors and Quad Bikes Safety + Hazardous Manual Tasks + Working with Livestock + Pesticides
Industry duty — Tractor + quad bike incidents leading cause of agricultural fatalities. Crush Protection Devices (CPDs) mandatory for quad bikes since 2021. Pesticide handling under APVMA regulation. Working alone in remote locations + emergency communication procedures.
Fitness / Health Clubs
How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks + Member Health Screening + Equipment Maintenance Standards
Industry duty — Equipment maintenance (resistance machines, cardio equipment) failure can cause serious injury — documented inspection + maintenance log mandatory. Personal trainer manual-handling injury risk. Member emergency-response procedures (cardiac event protocols).
Not-for-Profit
How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks + Volunteer Safety Guidance + sector-specific codes
Industry duty — WHS duties apply equally to volunteers as to paid workers — many NFPs underestimate this. Sector varies widely (community services, disability, aged care, education) — sector-specific codes apply. Vicarious trauma + occupational violence in front-line community-services roles.
Events / Conferences
How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks + Crowd Safety + Temporary Structures
Industry duty — Crowd safety + emergency egress + temporary structures (stages, marquees, scaffolding) primary risks. Sub-contractor coordination — events often have 10+ sub-contractors on site simultaneously. Working at height for rigging crews.
Creative / Photography / Production
Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice + Working at Height + Electrical Safety
Industry duty — Working at height (lighting rigs, drone operation) primary physical risk. Long hours + project-deadline pressure psychosocial risk. Electrical safety for production lighting + sound equipment. Drone operation under CASA regulations + WHS overlap.
Marketing / Advertising Agencies
Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice + Working with Visual Display Units guidance
Industry duty — Psychosocial risk primary — client-deadline pressure, always-on culture, junior-staff burnout. Sedentary work + ergonomics. Right-to-disconnect amendments (Fair Work Act 2024) now interact with WHS psychosocial duties for after-hours work.
HR / Recruitment
Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice + Sexual Harassment Prevention (positive duty under SDA 2022)
Industry duty — Psychosocial risk primary. Positive duty to prevent sexual harassment under SDA 2022 — recruiters with placement responsibility have shared duty for workplace conditions at client sites. Vicarious trauma from candidate complaint handling.
Insurance Brokers / Underwriters
Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice + Customer Aggression risk-control
Industry duty — Psychosocial risk from claim-disputed-customer aggression + dealing with traumatic claims (personal injury, fatality, catastrophic loss). Sedentary work + ergonomics. Lone-working considerations for mobile claims assessors.
Real Estate / Property Management
How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks + Lone Worker Safety + Asbestos Awareness
Industry duty — Lone-working primary risk — open homes, property inspections, after-hours showings. Asbestos awareness for older-property inspections. Aggressive tenants + landlords pose violence risk. Driver-safety considerations for high-mileage agents.
FAQs
WHS Act 2011 — answered.
Is the WHS Act 2011 the same in every state?
No — but mostly yes. NSW, QLD, SA, TAS, ACT, NT have adopted the model WHS Act 2011 with minor jurisdictional variations. WA adopted it in 2022 via the WHS Act 2020. Victoria operates under the OHS Act 2004 (similar but not identical). Commonwealth has its own WHS Act 2011 for Commonwealth-sector employers. So businesses operating in multiple states need to understand the model law plus the local variations.
What does "reasonably practicable" mean under WHS Act s 18?
Reasonably practicable means doing what is, at a particular time, reasonably able to be done — taking into account: the likelihood of the hazard occurring, the degree of harm that might result, what the person knows or ought to know about the hazard and ways of eliminating or minimising it, the availability and suitability of ways to eliminate or minimise the risk, and (after assessing the extent of the risk and the available ways to eliminate or minimise it) the cost — disproportionate cost may justify not eliminating the risk, but cost cannot be the sole determining factor.
Who is an "officer" under WHS Act s 27?
An officer means a person who, in relation to the corporation, is a director or other person who participates in decisions that affect the whole, or a substantial part, of the business or undertaking. The definition aligns with the s 9 definition in the Corporations Act 2001. Sole-trader founders, partnership partners, and senior executives all typically fall within s 27. Officers owe a separate, personal due-diligence duty.
What are the maximum penalties for WHS breaches?
Three categories. Category 1 (reckless conduct exposing person to risk of death or serious injury): individuals up to ~$300,000 + 5 years imprisonment, body corporates up to ~$3M, officers up to ~$600,000 + 5 years imprisonment. Category 2 (failure to comply with health and safety duty exposing person to risk of death or serious injury): individuals up to ~$150,000, body corporates up to ~$1.5M. Category 3 (failure to comply with health and safety duty): individuals up to ~$50,000, body corporates up to ~$500,000. NSW, QLD, WA also have industrial manslaughter offences with maximum 20-25 years imprisonment.
Do contractors and labour-hire workers count as "workers" under WHS Act?
Yes. The model WHS Act has a broad worker definition (s 7) that includes employees, contractors, sub-contractors, employees of contractors and sub-contractors, employees of labour-hire companies, outworkers, apprentices, work-experience students, and volunteers. The PCBU's primary duty extends to all of them — engaging a contractor does not transfer the WHS duty.
How does XIntelliSync help with WHS Act compliance?
XIntelliSync's payroll cluster generates the wage data PCBUs use as input to workers-comp premium calculation. The automated-safety-compliance-tracking agent records incident-tracking events in your audit log. WHS Register management itself, officer-level WHS attestations, board-reporting cycles, high-risk work licence renewals, plant-inspection due dates, and Code-of-Practice updates all stay your obligation — these belong in dedicated WHS-management-system software (or a documented internal process), not here.
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