Reforms to South Australia's work health and safety laws take effect

Reforms represent 'most important changes' in SA's work health and safety legislation

BY Dexter Tilo 04 Sep 2024

South Australia's reforms to its work health and safety laws are taking effect this month.

The Work Health and Safety (Review Recommendations) Amendment Act 2024 came into effect on September 1, introducing a string of major changes such as:

Giving the South Australian Employment Tribunal a greater role in resolving health and safety disputes, including the power to order employers to fix safety issues on a worksite.
Reforming restrictive confidentiality rules and enabling SafeWork SA to share more information with people affected by health and safety incidents, including victims, their families, and their representatives.
Establishing the SafeWork SA Advisory Committee as a permanent forum to build a stronger relationship between the regulator and key stakeholders, such as business groups, trade unions, and safety professionals.
Prohibiting insurance contracts that purport to indemnify employers against serious criminal penalties for breaches of workplace laws, such as for industrial manslaughter offences.

'Most important changes'

Kyam Maher, Attorney-General of South Australia, said these reforms represent the "most important changes" to the state's health and safety laws.

"They will make South Australian workplaces safer, they will make our system fairer for victims and their families, and they will help to fix safety issues at an early stage before serious workplace injuries or workplace deaths can occur," Maher said in a statement.

The reforms deliver a major government election commitment that pledged to implement the law reform recommendations made by the Independent Review of SafeWork SA.

The review, which was conducted by former WorkSafe Victoria executive director Mr John Merritt in 2022, made 39 recommendations after consulting different individuals and groups involved in work health and safety.

The government has accepted 36 of these recommendations, whether in whole, in part, or in principle.