Queensland's independent review of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, completed in December 2022, made 31 recommendations. The Queensland Government accepted all of them. The review was led by Craig Allen, former Deputy Director General of the Office of Industrial Relations; Charles Massy, a barrister specialising in industrial relations and employment; and Deirdre Swan, former Deputy President of the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission.

The resulting legislation, the Work Health and Safety and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2024 (WHSOLA Act), was passed by Queensland Parliament on 21 March 2024 and has been commencing in stages since. The Act implements recommendations from both the 2022 state review and the national 2018 Boland Review. While its primary focus is on strengthening worker representation and health and safety representative (HSR) provisions, several changes have direct consequences for how psychosocial hazards are managed and enforced in Queensland.

What the review found

The review's core finding was that safety performance improves when there is effective worker representation in health and safety matters. It examined the overall effectiveness of the WHS Act in achieving its objectives, including whether provisions relating to HSRs were operating as intended, whether workers were appropriately represented on health and safety matters, and whether the enforcement framework was effective.

The review also considered Queensland's alignment with the national model WHS laws, including changes arising from the 2018 Boland Review that had not yet been implemented in Queensland.

Key changes relevant to psychosocial compliance

The WHSOLA Act does not amend the psychosocial hazard provisions of the WHS Regulation directly. Queensland already adopted the psychosocial risk amendments to the WHS Regulation on 1 April 2023 and was the first jurisdiction to apply the hierarchy of controls to psychosocial risks specifically. The WHSOLA Act changes instead strengthen the infrastructure around how psychosocial risks are identified, raised and enforced.

Strengthened HSR framework. The Act strengthens and clarifies the role of health and safety representatives, including confirming HSRs can choose their own training provider, reducing the timeframe for complying with a provisional improvement notice from eight days to four days, and requiring PCBUs to notify workers in writing about their right to request HSR elections and the powers HSRs hold. PCBUs are now prohibited from intentionally hindering, preventing or discouraging workers from requesting HSR elections. For psychosocial compliance, this matters because HSRs are often the first point of escalation when workers identify psychosocial hazards. A stronger HSR framework means a more effective channel for raising issues such as workload, poor support, bullying or harassment before they become entrenched.

Expanded worker consultation obligations. The Act promotes consultation between workers, their representatives and the PCBU. New provisions clarify who can represent workers on health and safety matters, distinguishing between "suitable entities" (such as relevant unions, lawyers or technical experts) and "excluded entities." This formalises the consultation process and creates clearer expectations about worker involvement in hazard identification and risk management, including for psychosocial hazards.

Category 1 offence extended to negligence. The most serious WHS offence, Category 1 (previously limited to reckless conduct), now also captures negligent conduct that exposes a person to a risk of death or serious injury or illness. This is significant for psychosocial compliance because it lowers the fault threshold. A PCBU that negligently fails to manage a known psychosocial hazard, resulting in serious psychological injury, now faces potential prosecution under Category 1, which carries the highest penalties.

Streamlined dispute resolution. The Act moves certain WHS proceedings from the Magistrates Court to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission and streamlines the dispute resolution process. This is intended to ensure that health and safety disputes, including those relating to psychosocial hazards, are resolved more quickly and through a more specialised jurisdiction.

Prosecution timeframes extended. The timeframe for a person to request that the WHS Prosecutor bring a prosecution for a Category 1 or Category 2 offence has been extended from 12 months to 18 months. The regulator must also now provide written updates every three months to a person who has made a prosecution request. This is particularly relevant for psychosocial matters, where the harm may not be immediately apparent and investigations can be complex.

Insurance prohibition. The Act prohibits a person from entering into, providing or taking the benefit of insurance or indemnity arrangements that purport to cover monetary penalties under the WHS Act. This ensures that penalties retain their deterrent value.

Queensland's broader psychosocial framework

These changes sit alongside Queensland's existing psychosocial regulatory framework, which is among the most developed in Australia.

Queensland adopted the Managing the Risk of Psychosocial Hazards at Work Code of Practice 2022, which commenced on 1 April 2023. Under Queensland WHS law, codes of practice are enforceable: a PCBU must either comply with an approved code or demonstrate an equivalent or higher standard of health and safety. Queensland was also the first jurisdiction to require the hierarchy of controls to be applied to psychosocial hazards specifically.

In September 2024, new WHS Regulation amendments commenced requiring PCBUs to proactively manage the risk of sexual harassment and sex or gender-based harassment. From 1 March 2025, PCBUs must have a sexual harassment prevention plan in place. Queensland is the only jurisdiction to require a written prevention plan for sexual harassment under WHS law.

Workplace Health and Safety Queensland is also preparing updates to the psychosocial Code of Practice to reflect these and other developments.

The national context

Queensland's review is part of a broader national pattern. Multiple jurisdictions are simultaneously reviewing and strengthening their WHS frameworks, with the direction consistently toward stronger psychosocial provisions.

The model WHS Regulations were amended in June 2022 to include psychosocial hazard provisions. Every harmonised jurisdiction has now adopted those amendments. Victoria, the only state outside the harmonised framework, has announced it will introduce standalone psychosocial regulations by the end of 2025. Safe Work Australia is preparing a national Best Practice Review of the model WHS laws.

The pattern across all of these developments is consistent: regulators are moving from general duties to specific, enforceable obligations for psychosocial risk management. Queensland's 2022 review and the WHSOLA Act 2024 are one part of that national shift. The strengthened HSR framework, the extension of Category 1 to negligence, and the streamlined enforcement pathways all increase the practical consequence of failing to manage psychosocial hazards effectively.

For the full state-by-state breakdown, see the compliance-by-state collection.

Disclaimer: This article provides general information on psychosocial compliance in Australian workplaces. It does not constitute legal advice. Organisations should consult qualified professionals for advice specific to their circumstances. Regulatory references are sourced from the Queensland Office of Industrial Relations, WorkSafe Queensland, Norton Rose Fulbright, and MinterEllison and are current as of the date of publication.