Workplace Health and Safety Queensland review

On 25 January 2024, an independent review of Workplace Health and Safety Queensland was announced.

The review will support proposed amendments to Queensland’s work health and safety laws introduced to Parliament late last year. It will ensure activities are contemporary and reflective of stakeholder and community expectations.

Business leader Greg Quinn is leading the independent review. Greg will consult with industry stakeholders, including:

• Work Health and Safety Board and Committees
• Affected Persons Committee
• registered unions and registered employer organisations
• Workplace Health and Safety Queensland staff.

A report on the review’s findings is anticipated to be delivered to government by the reviewer by mid-year.

Terms of reference

It is critical that Queensland’s nation-leading work health and safety regulatory framework is underpinned by a robust work health and safety regulator (WHSQ).

The purpose of the independent review is to ensure that WHSQ’s practices and processes are best practice and contemporary, reflecting stakeholder and community expectations.

In particular, the independent review will consider:

1. The WHSQ inspectorate, including: resourcing; training; accountability; decision-making consistency; and enforcement and compliance capacity.
2. Policies and procedures to ensure the inspectorate is supported and meets stakeholder and community expectations of transparency, accountability, timeliness, and consistency.
3. The interaction between WHSQ’s policy teams and the inspectorate to ensure that policy is implemented in practice.
4. Ensuring that regular and robust proactive external engagement occurs with stakeholders and the community.
5. Transparency and accountability about data and decision making.

Further information

For further information about the review, please contact whsqreview@dsdilgp.qld.gov.au