A bill described as the largest reform of health and safety legislation has been sent to select committee.
The first reading of the Health and Safety Reform Bill was completed on a voice vote despite Opposition criticism of details in the bill and on the Government’s record in the area
The legislation is intended to play a major role in meeting the Government’s target of reducing workplace injury and death toll by 25 percent by 2020.
The bill will put more onus and legal requirements on managers and company directors to manage risks and keep their workers safe. It will also establish stronger penalties, enforcement tools, graduated offence categories and court powers.
It was sent to the transport and industrial relations committee for consideration
During the first reading of the bill Minister of Labour Simon Bridges said the bills development was prompted by a number of events, including the loss of 29 lives at the Pike River coal mine.
The bill addresses recommendations from the Royal Commission on the Pike River Mine Tragedy and the Independent Taskforce on Workplace Health and Safety.
The bill builds on the work already done in establishing WorkSafe New Zealand as the new, independent, workplace health and safety regulator, and changes to mining health and safety legislation that brought New Zealand into line with international best practice for the mining industry says Bridges.
Bridges says a shift in the way we all view our involvement in, and responsibility for, health and safety at work is needed to make a lasting change in our safety culture.
Seventy five people each year are killed and many more are seriously injured in our workplaces he told the house during the bills first reading.
Most workplace health and safety legislation in developed countries follows what is commonly known as the Robens model, named after Lord Alfred Robens’ 1972 report to the British government says Bridges.
The Robens model provides for performance-based general duties that ensure broad coverage of work and workplaces to be specified in the Act. These all-encompassing duties support innovation and provide flexibility for business.
Under the Robens model, these broad duties are underpinned by industry or hazard-specific regulations, such as specific rules for mining, petroleum exploration or major hazard facilities, with approved codes of practice and guidance to clarify and assist people to understand what is required of them.
Australia and the United Kingdom have both confirmed their Robens-based models as the best approach after recent reviews.
Bridges says the Robens model is the best way forward for New Zealand, and the bill reflects this.
The Taskforce recommended that the core concepts in the bill should be closely modelled on the Australian Model Work Health and Safety Act. The Government has carefully considered areas in the Model Act that need to be modified to reflect New Zealand’s specific context.
Bridges says simplifying workplace health and safety for trans-Tasman businesses is an important ancillary benefit of implementing a version of the Australian regime here.
Being able to draw upon the significant resources, body of knowledge and jurisprudence developed in Australia is another strong benefit says Bridges. This is especially the case when it comes to the suite of regulations, codes of practice, and guidance material that has been developed to support the Model Act.
The bill is an omnibus bill.
The first five parts will become the Health and Safety at Work Bill to replace the current Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 and Machinery Act 1950.
The bill will also result in amendment bills to the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act, Accident Compensation Act, Employment Relations Act, and WorkSafe New Zealand Act to ensure there is a consistent and robust health and safety framework.
It contains a strong and effective enforcement regime with new enforcement tools and graduated offence categories and penalties. Higher penalties for non-compliance are introduced where appropriate, and distinctions have been made between the role and nature of the offending duty holder.
The penalty regime under the Bill is complemented by a wider range of enforcement tools including enforceable undertakings or training orders, which can work to improve health and safety awareness and culture in ways that monetary penalties cannot.
The bill, while central to improving health and safety at work, is one part of a broader reform package.
Introduction and consideration of the bill is occurring parallel with the development of the first phase of health and safety regulations, with public consultation on these regulations expected to begin by early April 2014.
The development of codes of practice and guidance material will also begin shortly, as these are fundamental parts of the framework necessary to ensure that a robust and effective system exists and is operational on the day that the new Act comes fully into force which is anticipated to be 1 April 2015.
