Survey highlights cracks in OHS harmonisation model
11 November 2010

• Employers sceptical of current harmonisation model
• Majority (89 per cent) believe Federal government should introduce national laws
• 87 per cent of employers are against unions’ right to prosecute.

A Norton Rose Australia survey has revealed that the majority of employers (61 per cent) do not believe the current harmonisation model will achieve true harmonisation of OHS laws in Australia.

Employers are concerned about the cracks that are emerging between the States on the implementation of the model laws and the potential for further deviations in the implementation, enforcement and interpretation of the laws under the approach adopted. 89% of respondents to the survey believe the Federal government should intervene to take over work safety laws and introduce national laws.

Leading OHS expert and Norton Rose Partner, Michael Tooma says that the Federal Government has the power to introduce such laws at a Federal level, taking over work safety laws permanently. “There is an international convention which the Federal government could rely on to introduce such laws. The government could also rely on its powers with respect to constitutional corporations to do this,” Mr Tooma said.

“Only a Federal take-over of work safety laws can guarantee the safety and economic benefits of harmonising the law in this area,” he said.

“At best the current model delivers nine similar sets of laws, enforced by nine separate and vastly different regulators and interpreted by different court systems. WA has already walked away from the laws because they are too union friendly. NSW has walked away from the laws because they are not union friendly enough. We are told that the opposition in NSW will introduce the laws but how long will that last?”

87% of those surveyed in the National survey said that they were against unions having the right to prosecute.

94% thought that the duty of care should be qualified by reasonable practicability, a key recommendation of the expert panel report which led to the laws.

But surprisingly, 67% of those surveyed did not object to having the burden of proof on reasonable practicability, a key demand of NSW in the stoush with the federal government.

Mr Tooma said that result seems out of step with the demands of peak employer bodies on this issue. He said more research is needed on this issue, but the result is consistent with the view that this is not such an important issue for people in practice. “I have said for some time that this issue has been exaggerated on both sides of the argument. Reverse onus works well in the UK, Canada and Singapore. The real issue is how the law is applied in practice by the regulators,” he said.

View survey results here.

For further information please contact:

Samantha Magnusson
Head of Corporate Communications
+61 (0)2 9330 8138
+61 (0)423 116 696
samantha.magnusson@nortonrose.com

Kate Alexander
Senior Communications Advisor
+61 (0)2 9330 8170
+61 (0)434 563 849
kate.alexander@nortonrose.com

Editors note