Reasonably Practicable?

admin • March 25, 2025

The Victorian Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 requires that the employer has a duty to ensure a healthy and safe workplace. This duty must be met as far as reasonably practicable.


But what does this actually mean?


The following must be considered when determining what is reasonably practicable: (according to section 20(2) of The Act):

(a)  The likelihood the hazard or risk concerned eventuating;

(b)  The degree of harm that would result if the hazard eventuated;

(c)  What the person concerned knows, or ought to reasonably know, about the hazard or risk;

(d)  The availability and suitability of ways to eliminate or reduce the hazard or risk;

(e)  The cost of eliminating or reducing the hazard or risk.


This is often an area of confusion – primarily because the test for what is ‘reasonably practicable’ is in fact objective. When we consider this, it is best to look to WorkSafe for guidance.


WorkSafe Victoria provides some clarification in their Position Statement on the matter:

‘a person is to be judged by the standard of behaviour expected of a reasonable person in the duty-holder’s position who is required to comply with the same duty and is:

• Committed to providing the highest level of protection for people against risks to their health and safety.

• Proactive in taking measures to protect the health and safety of people.’

-         WorkSafe position statement - reasonably practicable

 

There must be a weighing up of each of the 5 points listed under section 20(2) of The Act (above), but with a clear presumption in favour of safety. This means that the likelihood of harm occurring, and the seriousness of the potential outcome, must be the most important factor. The cost must be considered to be the least important factor when deciding what is reasonably practicable.


‘If the degree of harm is significant, e.g. death or serious injury is highly likely, then it is extremely unlikely that the cost of eliminating or reducing the risk would ever be so disproportionate to the risk to justify a decision not to implement an available and suitable control measure.’

-          WorkSafe position statement - reasonably practicable

 

When considering what the person concerned should reasonably know about eliminating the hazard, the state of knowledge regarding hazards and controls must be considered and this must be applied in line with the ranking under the hierarchy of control.


The definition of what is ‘reasonably practicable’ is often one which causes some contention. It is important to go back to the WorkSafe position statement to make sure that you are making decisions in line with the intentions of The Act. Of course, it is always required that the highest level of protection from a hazard is provided in order to ensure a safe workplace.


To read more about this:

How WorkSafe applies the law in relation to Reasonably Practicable | WorkSafe Victoria

Working from home

By admin • April 21, 2025
Working from home has become very common. Sometimes we can be permanently working from home, temporarily or as part of a hybrid arrangement. Even though we are not physically in our usually workplace, our home has now become our workplace and so this means that OHS Laws still apply, and all the legislated duty holders still have the same duties under The Act. The employer still has duties, including to ensure a safe workplace, mitigate OHS risks and to consult with their employees. The employee has a duty to take reasonable care for their own safety and to co-operate with safety measure put in place by their employer. The risk management process should still take place, even though you are working in your home environment, and we must seek to identify hazards as a starting point. Common hazards which you may find when you assess your own home work environment could include: Poor lighting Noise Poor temperature control Electrical hazards Psychosocial hazards (eg: job demands, poor role clarity, lack of support, online abuse, bullying, etc) Fatigue Domestic violence Trip and slip hazards Poor ergonomics The individual worker is particularly important in the hazard identification and risk management process in the work from home context. This is because they are often the only person who will be aware of the risks associated with their individual home environment. For more information on this topic, take a look at: https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/safety-topic/managing-health-and-safety/working-home https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/officewise-working-home

Hazard Hunts: A tool for creating safer workplaces.

By admin • April 15, 2025
Hazard Hunts can be a great tool to use in workplace safety programs. They're a proactive strategy to identify and mitigate potential risks before incidents or injuries occur. But what exactly is a Hazard Hunt, and why is it so valuable? Hazard Hunts are regular, structured inspections aimed at identifying and eliminating potential risks in the workplace. Advantages: · Prevent Harm: proactively identification of potential hazards before they caused harm. Hazard hunts can prompt us to focus on specific risks that may have been overlooked. · Engagement of Employees: Talk to employees in the area. They often have valuable insights into hazards that may take time to be evident to outsiders. · Empowers Individuals: Creates an opportunity for individual employees to make a tangible difference to the safety of their workplace. This can really empower the individual and turn their mind to safety. · Collect information: Hazard hunts can prompt us to focus on specific risks that may have been overlooked · Increases awareness: The engagement of the workforce in this way can turn the mind to hazard identification in a way which can sharpens our ability to identify potential dangers and enhances our overall safety. · Positive influences safety culture: The involvement of the whole workforce, from management to the shop-floor, can foster an environment where safety becomes a shared responsibility. It can encourage a culture of vigilance and care. What next? It is integral that there is thorough follow-up after a hazard hunt takes place. This means utilising the risk matrix and hierarchy of control to prioritise the hazards which are dealt with first. Then you must move forward with mitigating the risk of the hazards coming to fruition. As always, this process must take place with meaningful consultation. If you don’t do this, then the benefits of the Hazard Hunt will be lost. The effort put into the hazard identification exercise must be matched by the dedication of the employer to make meaningful safety improvements. The Role of HSR’s: The people who are doing the work are the best placed to identify hazards in their work. They are also often the best people to come up with successful OHS solutions. HSR’s can encourage the use of hazard hunts and encourage their co-workers to actively participate. As always, HSR’s act as a conduit between the workers and the employer – working to improve safety in their role as employee representatives.