The WHS Act sets the floor. The Codes set the ceiling. Sector regulations bracket both.
Beyond the model WHS Act 2011, every industry has Codes of Practice plus sector-specific regulation overlays. Construction follows the Construction Work Code + HRCW regime. Mining has its own safety regime. Transport has Chain of Responsibility. Childcare has the Education and Care Services National Regulations. Below is the key Codes index + the per-industry obligation matrix.
Why this lives on XIntelliSync, not on a Codes-of-Practice repository
Codes of Practice are admissible as evidence in WHS proceedings. Identifying the ones that apply to your industry — How to Manage WHS Risks (universal), Construction Work Code + HRCW + SWMS, Hazardous Manual Tasks, Workplace Mental Health Code (NSW + VIC), Mines Safety state-specific regimes, Heavy Vehicle National Law Chain of Responsibility — stays the customer's responsibility (or your WHS consultant's). XIntelliSync does NOT maintain a Code-of-Practice registry, does NOT generate SWMS for HRCW activities, and does NOT track plant inspection due dates. What XIntelliSync DOES: the payroll cluster generates the wage data driving workers-comp premium per state. The article below is the 8 key Codes + sector regulation overlays + per-industry obligation matrix.
Eight key Codes + sector regulations
The most-cited frameworks across XIntelliSync industries.
How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks
UniversalThe foundational Code — applies to every PCBU regardless of industry. Sets the four-step risk management process: identify hazards, assess risks, control risks (using the hierarchy of control), review controls. Use as the template for every industry-specific risk assessment.
Construction Work Code of Practice
ConstructionDefines "construction work" + "high-risk construction work" (HRCW). HRCW triggers Safe Work Method Statement (SWMS) under WHS Reg 291 — work above 3m, asbestos, confined space, demolition, work near water, work in or near road traffic, etc. Principal contractor + WHS management plan duties for projects above $250k.
Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice
Construction, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Hospitality, Retail, Aged CareManual handling is the #1 cause of workplace injury across most service-sector industries. Code defines hazardous manual tasks (forces, postures, repetition, durations, vibration) + the assessment + control hierarchy. Patient transfer, stock movement, kitchen/bar work, warehousing all in scope.
Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace
Manufacturing, Construction, Mining, Agriculture, TransportPlant = machinery, equipment, appliance, tool. Code covers: design, manufacture, supply, installation, commissioning, operation, maintenance, inspection, dismantling. Guarding, isolation, lockout-tagout, plant-specific risk assessments, operator training + licensing all addressed.
Workplace Mental Health Code of Practice
Universal (especially Professional Services, Digital, Legal, HR, Marketing)Introduced in NSW + VIC 2023-2024 with other jurisdictions following. Defines psychosocial hazards: high job demand, low job control, poor support, poor reward, poor procedural justice, role conflict, poor change management, traumatic events, remote/isolated work, violent/aggressive behaviours, harassment, bullying, conflict. Mandatory risk assessment + control framework.
Mines Safety and Inspection Act (state-specific)
MiningMining sector has its own safety regime in WA (Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994), NSW (Work Health and Safety (Mines and Petroleum Sites) Act 2013), QLD (Coal Mining Safety and Health Act 1999 + Mining and Quarrying Safety and Health Act 1999). Critical Risk Management Standards mandatory. Underground + surface operations have separate provisions.
Heavy Vehicle National Law + Chain of Responsibility
Transport / LogisticsDriver fatigue management — work + rest hours regulated under HVNL. Chain of Responsibility extends WHS-equivalent duties to consignors, packers, loaders, schedulers, executive officers — not just drivers. Electronic work diaries mandatory for vehicles >12t since recent amendments.
Education and Care Services National Regulations
Childcare / Early LearningNational Regulations 2011 (under Education and Care Services National Law) sets educator-to-child ratios, qualifications, building + equipment standards. Operates alongside the WHS Act — many ratio + supervision requirements also serve a WHS purpose. ACECQA is the national regulator.
Where to find every Code + sector regulation
Authoritative Code + sector-regulation sources.
Safe Work Australia — Codes of Practice index
National policy body's complete index of approved Codes of Practice. Each Code links to the full PDF + state-specific adoption status. Codes are admissible as evidence in WHS proceedings.
NHVR — Chain of Responsibility
National Heavy Vehicle Regulator's authoritative source on Chain of Responsibility duties. Covers consignors, packers, loaders, schedulers, executive officers — not just drivers. Operates alongside the WHS Act for transport-sector PCBUs.
ACECQA — Education and Care Services Authority
National regulator for childcare and early-learning under the Education and Care Services National Law + Regulations 2011. Sets ratios, qualifications, building standards. Operates alongside state WHS regulators.
WA Dept of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety — Mining Safety
WA mining safety regulator under the Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994. Mining sector retained its separate regime when WA adopted the WHS Act 2020. Critical Risk Management Standards mandatory.
Australian Human Rights Commission — Positive Duty
AHRC's authoritative source on the positive duty under SDA 2022 amendments. Operates alongside WHS Act psychosocial duties — sexual harassment is both a discrimination matter and a WHS hazard.
All 22+ industries served
Full per-industry WHS obligation matrix.
Primary code + industry duty + workers comp nuance + most-likely notifiable incident, all in one matrix per industry. The complete view of where each industry sits in the Australian WHS landscape.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Industry premium rate amongst the highest (typically 4-6%). Class A risk classification. Income protection top-up insurance is industry standard for sub-contractors not covered under principal-contractor policy.
Likely notifiable incident — Fall from height >2m is the highest-frequency notifiable incident. Plant tip-over, struck-by-falling-object, electrocution from underground service strike all require immediate notification to the WHS regulator.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate moderate-to-high (typically 1.5-3%). Mental health claims (vicarious trauma, burnout, occupational violence) increasingly common — early-intervention return-to-work programs critical.
Likely notifiable incident — Needlestick injury with bloodborne-pathogen exposure is notifiable as serious injury. Patient assault on staff (resulting in hospitalisation) requires regulator notification within 48 hours.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate moderate (typically 1.5-2.5%). High casual workforce + young workers — OnboardingSafetyChecklist particularly important for compliance + claim defensibility.
Likely notifiable incident — Burn requiring hospital treatment, fall causing fracture, deep laceration requiring surgery — all notifiable as serious injuries. Glycol leak in commercial fridge as dangerous incident.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low-to-moderate (typically 0.8-1.8%). Casual + young-worker concentration. Mental health claims rising due to customer aggression incidents post-pandemic.
Likely notifiable incident — Armed robbery is dangerous incident requiring immediate notification. Stock-fall injury from high shelves notifiable if hospitalisation required. Customer-on-staff assault notifiable if serious injury.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low (typically 0.4-0.8%). Mental health claims (work-related stress, burnout) the dominant claim category — comprehensive psychosocial risk assessment now mandatory in NSW + Vic.
Likely notifiable incident — Workplace stress claim resulting in extended absence is notifiable in some jurisdictions. Travel-related incident (vehicle accident on client visit) covered under workers comp scheme.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low (typically 0.3-0.6%). Mental health + repetitive strain (RSI) claims dominant. Right-to-disconnect amendments (Fair Work Act 2024) interact with WHS psychosocial duties.
Likely notifiable incident — Serious mental-health claim resulting in extended absence is notifiable in NSW + Vic. RSI claim if requiring surgery. Remote-work injury (home office) treated as workplace incident if employee can prove work-related causation.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low (typically 0.4-0.8%). Mental health + occupational violence claims rising in retail-banking front-office roles.
Likely notifiable incident — Armed robbery incident at branch requires immediate notification. Serious psychological injury claim from customer-aggression exposure notifiable in NSW + Vic.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low (typically 0.4-0.7%). Mental health claims dominant — particularly post-2022 sexual-harassment positive-duty reforms. Vicarious trauma claims from criminal/family-law practice.
Likely notifiable incident — Serious psychological injury claim from sexual harassment, bullying, or vicarious trauma is notifiable in most jurisdictions. Threatening behaviour from clients in family-law matters notifiable as occupational violence.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate moderate (typically 1.5-2.5%). Manual handling claims dominant. Infectious disease exposure (gastro outbreaks, COVID) increasingly common claim category.
Likely notifiable incident — Serious injury to a child in care is notifiable to ACECQA + state regulator (separate from WHS regulator). Educator injury from child aggression is notifiable as occupational violence.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low-to-moderate (typically 0.6-1.5%). Mental health + occupational violence claims dominant. Long-tail claims for vicarious trauma in special-needs settings.
Likely notifiable incident — Student-on-teacher assault causing serious injury is notifiable as occupational violence. Excursion incident causing student or staff hospitalisation requires regulator notification.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate moderate-to-high (typically 2-4%). Plant/machinery injury claims dominant. Hearing loss + chronic occupational disease (asbestos, silicosis) long-tail claims.
Likely notifiable incident — Plant entrapment + amputation are notifiable as serious injuries. Hazardous chemical spill above threshold is dangerous incident. Confirmed hearing loss claim notifiable to comp authority.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate moderate-to-high (typically 2.5-4%). Vehicle accident claims dominant. Fatigue-related incident claims investigated by both WHS regulator + NHVR.
Likely notifiable incident — Heavy vehicle accident causing serious injury is notifiable to both WHS regulator + NHVR. Fatigue-related incident triggers Chain of Responsibility investigation across the supply chain.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate high (typically 3-6%). Plant + drilling + heavy-vehicle claims dominant. Hearing loss + dust diseases (silicosis, coal-workers pneumoconiosis) long-tail claims.
Likely notifiable incident — Underground incident, plant entrapment, blasting incident, confined-space fatality — all notifiable to mining safety regulator immediately + WHS regulator within 48 hours.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate moderate-to-high (typically 2.5-4%). Vehicle (tractor, quad bike, ute) claims dominant. Pesticide exposure long-tail claims.
Likely notifiable incident — Tractor rollover + quad bike incident causing serious injury are notifiable. Pesticide exposure requiring hospitalisation. Livestock-related serious injury (kick, crush) notifiable.
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).
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low-to-moderate (typically 1-2%). Manual handling + repetitive strain claims dominant for personal trainers + group fitness instructors.
Likely notifiable incident — Equipment failure causing member or staff serious injury is notifiable. Member cardiac event during exercise requires emergency response per documented procedure (separate from WHS notification).
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate variable (typically 1-3%). Volunteer injury treatment depends on jurisdiction — some states cover volunteers under workers comp; others require separate volunteer accident insurance.
Likely notifiable incident — Volunteer serious injury is notifiable in same way as employee injury. Service-user-on-volunteer assault notifiable as occupational violence in disability + community-services contexts.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate moderate (typically 1.5-3%). Manual handling (load-in / load-out) + slips/trips/falls + working-at-height claims dominant. Casual workforce concentration.
Likely notifiable incident — Crowd crush incident, temporary-structure collapse, working-at-height fall are all notifiable as serious incidents requiring immediate notification.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low-to-moderate (typically 0.8-1.8%). Manual handling + working-at-height claims dominant. Mental health claims rising in long-hours production sector.
Likely notifiable incident — Falls from rigging, electrical incidents on set, drone-related injury — all notifiable as serious incidents. Production-site evacuation incident notifiable as dangerous incident.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low (typically 0.4-0.7%). Mental health + RSI claims dominant. Burnout-related extended-leave claims rising in junior-account-manager cohort.
Likely notifiable incident — Serious mental-health claim resulting in extended absence is notifiable in NSW + Vic under psychosocial duty. RSI claim requiring surgery notifiable.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low (typically 0.4-0.7%). Mental health claims dominant. Vicarious trauma claims from candidate-complaint or workplace-investigation work.
Likely notifiable incident — Serious psychological injury claim from sexual harassment exposure or vicarious trauma is notifiable in most jurisdictions. Threatening behaviour from candidates / employers notifiable as occupational violence.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low (typically 0.4-0.8%). Mental health + vicarious trauma claims dominant. Insurance-broker claims from aggressive policyholder interactions.
Likely notifiable incident — Serious psychological injury from customer aggression or vicarious trauma is notifiable. Threatening behaviour from disputed-claim customer notifiable as occupational violence.
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.
Workers comp nuance — Premium rate low-to-moderate (typically 0.6-1.5%). Vehicle accident + occupational violence claims dominant. Mental health claims rising in property-management cohort.
Likely notifiable incident — Agent assault during property inspection or showing is notifiable as occupational violence. Vehicle accident causing serious injury covered under workers comp + WHS notification.
FAQs
Industry-specific WHS — answered.
Are Codes of Practice mandatory?
Codes of Practice are NOT mandatory — but they are admissible as evidence in WHS proceedings as to what is reasonably practicable. If a PCBU does not follow a Code, they must demonstrate that an alternative method achieves an equivalent or better outcome. In practice: deviation from a Code without strong justification is high-risk in any prosecution or inspector audit.
How do I know which Codes apply to my industry?
Start with the universal "How to Manage WHS Risks" Code (applies to all PCBUs). Then identify your industry-specific Codes from the Safe Work Australia index or your state regulator. Most industries have 3-6 Codes that materially apply: a high-level "industry" code + 2-4 task-specific codes (e.g. Construction = Construction Work Code + Falls + Hazardous Manual Tasks + Plant). Code identification stays the customer's responsibility — XIntelliSync does not maintain a Code-of-Practice registry.
When does a SWMS (Safe Work Method Statement) become mandatory?
Under WHS Reg 291: a SWMS is mandatory before any high-risk construction work (HRCW). HRCW includes 18 categories: work risking fall >2m, work on telecommunications towers, demolition of load-bearing structures, work involving asbestos, work in or near a confined space, work in or near a trench >1.5m, tunnels, excavations, explosives, near pressurised gas mains, near energised electrical installations, structural alterations needing temporary support, on or near roadways with vehicles, in contaminated atmospheres, near heavy vehicles or mobile plant, work above water, work on operating road and rail, and work in artificial extremes of temperature.
What changed with the Workplace Mental Health Code?
NSW + VIC introduced specific Codes of Practice for managing psychosocial hazards in 2023-2024 (with other jurisdictions following). The Codes formalise what was already implicit in s 19 — that psychosocial risks (high job demand, low control, harassment, bullying, traumatic events, etc.) are WHS hazards requiring the same risk-assessment + control framework as physical hazards. Combined with the right-to-disconnect amendments under the Fair Work Act 2024, after-hours work demands now have explicit WHS implications.
How does Chain of Responsibility differ from the WHS Act for transport?
Chain of Responsibility (CoR) under the Heavy Vehicle National Law extends accountability beyond the driver to everyone in the supply chain whose action or inaction affects compliance — consignors, packers, loaders, schedulers, executive officers. CoR + WHS overlap on fatigue management + load restraint + speed + mass/dimension limits. Both regimes can prosecute the same incident; coordination across the regulator landscape is critical.
What about the new sexual harassment positive duty?
Since the 2022 amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act, employers have a positive duty to take reasonable and proportionate measures to eliminate, as far as possible, sexual harassment. This duty operates ALONGSIDE the WHS Act primary duty of care — sexual harassment is a psychosocial hazard under WHS s 19 AND a discrimination matter under SDA. Both Australian Human Rights Commission AND WHS regulators can investigate. Documented prevention measures (training, reporting channels, investigation procedures) satisfy both.
How does XIntelliSync help with industry-specific WHS?
Code-of-Practice identification stays the customer's responsibility. XIntelliSync does not maintain a Code-of-Practice registry, does not generate SWMS for HRCW activities, does not track plant inspection due dates, and does not route psychosocial-risk obligations into a WHS register. Those capabilities sit in dedicated WHS-management-system software. XIntelliSync's payroll cluster does generate the wage data that drives workers-comp premium calculation per state.
Continue reading