Changes to Victorian Workcover Legislation

WorkCover and Outsourcing

The Victorian WorkCover Authority has issued new guidelines effective from 1 January 2006 to deal with specific issues relating to managing risks and recording steps taken by employers who outsource functions or who engage labour hire companies. The VWA has a view that outsourced tasks are high risk, that workers performing those tasks sustain more work-related injuries, make slower recoveries, are difficult to return to normal duties and incur significantly higher claims costs. The VWA believes that liabilities flow uphill ie outsourcing the job does not outsource the risk and the responsibility.

Labour Hire

The VWA has released detailed protocols for hazard identification and risk assessment for host employers and labour hire firms and new procedures for premium calculation for the labour hire firms. These are available in detail from the VWA website, but for confidential technical advice on putting these new processes in place, contact our office.

Sub-Contracting

The VWA's approach on labour hire also applies in the growing area of sub-contracting. In many circumstances, WorkCover treats sub-contractors as workers rather than independent parties. WorkCover expects that subbies will be properly inducted into each work site, that a formal documented job safety assessment will be completed in every case and that safe systems of work and relevant OHS policies and procedures will always be in place. If this is not clear, or if you have any questions about your level of compliance with any part of this, please contact our office.