WorkSafe WA

Regulator

WHS Act 2020 (WA)

Primary Legislation

WHS Regulation 2025

Current Regulation

31 March 2022

WHS Adoption Date

1 July 2026

Section 26A Commencement

1 December 2026

WEL Commencement

Yes

Harmonised Jurisdiction

WorkSafe WA operates within the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety and is responsible for workplace health and safety enforcement across all non-mining industries in Western Australia. The regulator has undergone significant transformation since the adoption of the WHS Act 2020, training its inspectorate on the new duty framework and developing enforcement policies aligned with the national model. WorkSafe WA conducts workplace inspections, issues improvement and prohibition notices, investigates incidents, and prosecutes serious breaches. The regulator faces unique challenges given the geographic scale of Western Australia, with workplaces spread across more than 2.5 million square kilometres including remote pastoral stations, offshore installations, and construction sites in the Pilbara and Kimberley regions. WorkSafe WA coordinates with the Resources Safety division on mine safety and with the Department of Health on public health matters that intersect with workplace safety.

Western Australia operated under the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 for almost four decades before transitioning to the harmonised WHS Act 2020 on 31 March 2022. The transition was significant because the old Act used different terminology, different duty structures, and different enforcement mechanisms from the harmonised model. Employers became PCBUs. The concept of a person who has control of a workplace was replaced by the broader PCBU duty framework. Resolution of health and safety issues shifted from the provisional improvement notice model to the harmonised framework of health and safety representatives, committees, and issue resolution procedures. Many WA businesses, particularly in construction, manufacturing, and agriculture, found the transition challenging because their compliance documentation, training materials, and safety management systems were built around the old Act. The WHS Regulation 2025 now applies in WA with the same force as in other harmonised jurisdictions, including the Section 26A codes of practice framework and the WEL transition.

Although mining operations in Western Australia fall under separate mine safety legislation, many businesses operate across both the mining and general industry sectors. Labour hire companies, maintenance contractors, catering providers, and transport operators frequently move between mine sites regulated by the Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994 and general industry workplaces regulated by the WHS Act 2020. These businesses must maintain compliance with both regulatory frameworks simultaneously. The resource sector also creates indirect WHS obligations for general industry businesses through supply chain requirements. Major mining companies routinely impose contractor prequalification standards that exceed the minimum legal requirements, including ISO 45001 certification, drug and alcohol testing, fitness for duty assessments, and specific training requirements. Understanding the intersection between mine safety legislation and general WHS law is essential for any business operating in the Western Australian resource sector.

WorkSafe WA has identified several priority areas for enforcement and compliance campaigns following the WHS Act transition. Construction safety remains a top priority, with a focus on fall prevention, excavation safety, and electrical work on residential and commercial construction sites in the Perth metropolitan area. The manufacturing sector faces scrutiny around machine guarding, hazardous chemical management, and noise exposure, particularly in the industrial areas of Kwinana, Welshpool, and Henderson. Agriculture in regional WA is targeted for compliance campaigns around quad bike safety, silo safety, and seasonal worker accommodation. The transport and logistics sector, which services the resource industry with heavy vehicle movements across vast distances, faces fatigue management and load restraint enforcement. WorkSafe WA penalty unit values align with the WA penalty unit framework and the regulator has demonstrated a willingness to prosecute serious breaches, with several significant fines imposed since the WHS Act 2020 commenced.