Psychosocial hazards · NSW
Psychosocial hazards at work in New South Wales.
New South Wales requires employers to manage the risks of psychosocial hazards - and two of the named hazards, remote or isolated work and exposure to violence and aggression, are exactly where lone-worker safety sits. Here's the current instrument and what it means.
- Instrument
- the Code of Practice: Managing psychosocial hazards at work, an approved code of practice under section 274 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW).
- Status
- NSW was the first Australian jurisdiction to publish a psychosocial code - it has been an approved code of practice since May 2021, and the WHS Regulation's psychosocial provisions have since been strengthened.
- Regulator
- SafeWork NSW ↗
NSW operates under the harmonised Work Health and Safety scheme.
Where lone-worker safety fits
Psychosocial hazards are aspects of work that can cause psychological harm. Two of the named hazards are the reason lone-worker safety exists: remote or isolated work (working away from support, with limited means to summon help) and exposure to violence and aggression. A monitored duress system - a reliable way to raise the alarm, a response that arrives, and evidence afterwards - is one control that addresses both of those specific hazards directly.
It is not the whole of compliance: regulators expect a hierarchy of controls, with work-design measures considered first. A duress system is one control within a broader, compliant approach.
This is general information, not legal advice. The authoritative source is SafeWork NSW and the legislation itself - check the current requirements that apply to your workplace at safework.nsw.gov.au.