National OHS harmonisation: will it arrive?

As I travel around the countryside meeting many of our customers and discussing all of the things that are currently affecting their businesses, one of the things I am often getting asked about is the current state of the national harmonisation of OHS laws.

Usually the conversation covers the so-called ‘patchwork’ or ‘two-speed’ economy with mining and professional services showing double-digit growth while manufacturing and agriculture are lucky to be in positive territory. Add into that the uncertainly around the true impact of a carbon tax on a number of businesses, coupled with concerns about the challenges employers see with the flexibility of the current Fair Work Australia laws, and employers are finding it challenging to position their businesses for the future - not to mention to attract and retain staff amidst the lucrative offers from the mining industry. And then there is a high Australia dollar that looks like staying at these levels for at least the near future - meaning our home-grown manufacturing is doing it tough when compared with offshore goods.

Little wonder some of our customers are not too optimistic about the future. However, one small ray of sunshine was the national harmonisation of the OHS laws, especially for larger national corporates, as it promised reduced administrative costs and greater economies of scale. Streamlining the different state OHS compliance requirements and creating nationally consistent safety standards should lead to greater certainty and understanding of OHS laws and ultimately, better safety outcomes for all businesses.

The harmonisation deadline set by COAG in 2008 was 1 January 2012, but that deadline has well and truly passed with us seemingly no closer to the desired end state. With Queensland, New South Wales, the two territories (ACT and NT) as well as the Commonwealth passing the laws, we still have four states yet to enact the changes. Both South Australia and Tasmania are both trying hard and may introduce the legislation in the near future as the bills go back and forth within state parliament. However, Victoria and Western Australia have absolutely no urgency, as the legislation seems to be a fair way off while both governments talk about the significant time needed to further assess its impact on their state.

At a time when there are many complexities involved in creating a safe workplace - the technicalities of machine and plant safety, enacting behavioural safety and culture change programs, stimulating workforce ownership and safety leadership, as well as all the OHS compliance requirements - the last thing businesses need is a confusing legislative framework. After significant time and effort we are no closer to harmonisation and we will be lucky to see anything by 2013.

Unfortunately, it is the safety of our people and workplaces that will ultimately suffer and in my travels I have seen a number of companies that desperately need all the help they can get - and with the majority of their time and effort focused on the other issues above, safety is not getting the attention it deserves. I urge the government to put politics aside and fast track the harmonisation so companies can get on with the job of running their businesses safer than ever before.

By Scott Moffat, the Managing Director of Pilz Australia & New Zealand. He is a senior executive with over 20 years’ experience and extensive knowledge in the automation, safety, energy, mineral processing and petrochemical industries and possesses a unique blend of engineering background and corporate finance coupled with strong business acumen and customer focus. - This was changed for online publication then put back in.