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BUSM 3119
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
SEMESTER 1 & 2, 2016
MANAGING WORKPLACE HEALTH & SAFETY

Professor Stephen Teo

Interim Director, Global Business Innovation
Enhancing Capability Platform
RMIT University Research & Innovation Portfolio
For RMIT Students Use Only
Do not distribute or upload to websites or reproduce in any form.
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OBJECTIVES

CHAPTER 11
Managing occupational health
and safety

Trace the development of WHS programs in Australian

industry

Recognise the various perspectives of employers, unions

and employees, and the influences of medical, paramedical
and legal professions on WHS theory and practice

Explain recent WHS legislation in Australian national and

state government jurisdictions, and analyse its respective
advantages and disadvantages

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OBJECTIVES (CONT.)
4

Describe the scope of WHS programs

Determine the roles of senior, middle and line

managers as well as human resource management
specialists in the management of WHS issues at the
workplace.

THE EXTENT OF THE PROBLEM

INTRODUCTION
Healthy and safe work environment both desirable and
cost-effective
WHS pervades all aspects of HRM
Costs of workplace accidents and disease major factor
in strategic focus.

THE EXTENT OF THE PROBLEM (CONT.)

20092010: 337 fatalities and a fatality rate of
1.9/100,000 workers
20062007: Almost 150,000 serious workers
compensation claims
Direct and indirect costs
Potential hazards include:
physical factors
chemical agents or other hazardous substances
workplace organisation
stress
violence or physical harm from work colleagues.

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ECONOMIC COST OF STRESS

Workplace injuries and illnesses (including
occupational stress, workplace bullying and
other negative workplace ill-treatment
behaviours) impose a significant cost for
Australia:
A 2007 Medibank-commissioned research found that
presenteeism (working while sick) costs was $25.7 billion
annually and on average, 6 working days of productivity are
lost per year per employee due to presenteeism.
For 2008-09, the total economic cost of work-related injuries
was estimated to be $60.6 billion or 4.8 per cent of Australias
GDP for the same period (Safe Work Australia, 2012).

PERSPECTIVE OF WHS IN
AUSTRALIA

Developed through social reform and humanitarian

movement
Professionals interest in WHS.
Medical model
Occupational epidemiology
Industrial psychology

WHS AND STRATEGIC HRM

Adopt strategic interventions and use these as
evidence of their contributions to business productivity
and profitability
Focus on the common causes and trends of site
accidents and injuries
Develop appropriate preventive work systems or more
effective administrative and rehabilitation programs.

PROFESSIONALS INTEREST
IN WHS
Medical model
An emphasis on the diagnosis and treatment of, rather than the
prevention of, illnesses and disease
Medical or physical approaches often seem narrowly focused or
unable to fully explain causes or devise suitable preventative
strategies.

Industrial sociology
Ergonomics and occupational hygiene
Legal profession
Union approaches

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PROFESSIONALS INTEREST
IN WHS (CONT.)
Occupational epidemiology

PROFESSIONALS INTEREST
IN WHS (CONT.)
Industrial sociology
The study of interpersonal communications and relationships in the

Researches epidemics, or the incidence of diseases and illnesses

in workplaces, and attempt to establish their causes and solutions

Industrial psychology
The study of employees psychological reactions to their

workplace
Four-level causative model of injury/disease (Dwyer 1982)

Reward systems

Command structure

Work organisation

Individual factors.

workplaces.

PROFESSIONALS INTEREST
IN WHS (CONT.)

PROFESSIONALS INTEREST
IN WHS (CONT.)
Union approaches

Ergonomics and occupational hygiene

Aim to eliminate risks and improve productivity by modifying the

physical arrangements and conditions of the workplace
Draw on scientific management theories.

The legal profession and WHS

Legal action has increased since the passing of more

ACTU adopted a Vision 20052015:

Support employers, employees and all those in the supply chain to develop
cultures and attitudes, and accept responsibilities, that achieve safer places of work
and safer methods of working so that Australian workplaces are free from death, injury
and disease.

Cooperating with governments to harmonise the present state and

federal WHS laws towards standard national WHS legislation

comphrensive WHS legislation in most Australian states during the

1980s and subsequent years .

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WHS AND HRM

Requires substantial input and consultation from all parties
at the workplace
Issues include:
strategic level of current issues, from legislation to new work
processes
operational level, from presence on workplace committees

WHS LAW IN AUSTRALIA

A wide range of Acts and statutes concerning specific
occupational risks and hazards
common law
national WHS legislation
Federal and state laws.

to support and advice.

WHS LAW IN AUSTRALIA

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS

National model WHS legislation was formulated in 2011

Three broad thrusts

1970s: concern with costs

prevention
compensation
rehabilitation.

UK and US influences lead to similar legislation in

most Australian states during the 1970s and 1980s.

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PREVENTIVE WHS LEGISLATION

The concept of occupational wellbeing and the
awareness of employee welfare signified a more
preventive approach to WHS
WHS is the protection and maintenance of the
highest degree of physical, mental and social wellbeing
of workers in all occupations
Self-regulation; cautions preferred to punishment

THE NEW NATIONAL WHS

LEGISLATION (CONT.)
New definitions of employer and employee
New PCBU duties (Person Conducting a Business or
Undertaking)
New rules for union participation

THE NEW NATIONAL WHS

LEGISLATION
The harmonisation process towards the new national
WHS laws commenced between July 2008 and
December 2010
Some states conform to the new legislation, some do not (All
states and territories have made new WHS laws based on the
model laws, except for Victoria and Western Australia).

For practical advice on how businesses can meet

health and safety laws, HR practitioners must look at
the approved codes of practice for their state/territory.
When courts are trying to decide whether laws have
been met, they may consider whether codes of practice
have been followed.

WORKERS COMPENSATION AND

REHABILITATION LEGISLATION
Rehabilitation should be:
industry-based
function-oriented
based on early intervention
multidisciplinary

New penalties.

based on a shared responsibility.

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CREATING A SAFE, HEALTHY AND

ETHICAL WORK ENVIRONMENT

ISSUE 1: ACCIDENTS AT WORK

Need to be able to:

While the success of a WHS program depends largely on

assess extent and costs to industry and society (imprecise)

managers, supervisors, union representatives and

employees themselves, HR professionals can be involved

identify cause and build in prevention

develop an effective framework.

in strategic, operational, coordinating and administrative

roles that support all their activities.
p. 519 of the textbook

ISSUE 1: ACCIDENTS AT WORK

(CONT.)

ISSUE 2:
OCCUPATIONAL STRESS
Increased pressure on employees (e.g. work
intensification, lack of job autonomy/control)
Legal precedents
Series of research studies
No agreed definition of stress
Symptoms: fatigue, exhaustion and burnout, physical
or emotional breakdown
Effects.

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STRESS AND JOB

PERFORMANCE MODEL

EMPLOYER RESPONSES

1
2
3
4
5

Five-step program:
Formulate a preventive strategy
Develop a stress diagnostic system
Involve top-level management
Evaluate current programs
Document what has been done.

STRESS IN ORGANISATIONAL SETTINGS

ISSUE 3: THE RISKS OF

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
Increased terrorism
Recent disease outbreaks
Bird flu and swine flu
Deep vein thrombosis
Adverse effects on
travellers physical and
mental health, as well as
disruptions to their families.

Employers advised to:

monitor levels of travel
required
develop alternatives
establish codes of practice
discuss risks personally
examine and communicate
levels of insurance and
workers compensation
entitlements.

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ISSUE 4: WORKPLACE
BULLYING
Cause significant financial damage to organisations
Bullying is the repeated less favourable treatment of a
person by another or others in the workplace, which
may be considered unreasonable and inappropriate in
the workplace.
p. 529 of the textbook

ISSUE 5: SHIFT WORK

interrupts workers circadian (or body) rhythms the

light/dark cycle resulting in increased levels of
workers sickness and interruptions to productivity.

ISSUE 6: EMPLOYEE PERSONAL

PROBLEMS

WELLNESS PROGRAMS

Supervisors receive training and support

On-site counselling services

unusual or irregular hours, usually involving evening

and night work (p. 529 of the textbook)

Develop broad preventive programs concerned with

overall employee lifestyle issues

Regular exercise, proper nutrition, weight control, and

the avoidance of heart and lung disease.

External employee assistance programs.

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MANAGING WHS PROGRAMS

Top management commitment
Integrated promotion, communication, training and
development activities
Protective and medical/first aid facilities
Risk management, recording, analysis and
development systems
Consultative mechanisms
Integrated approaches.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION AND

ASSISTANCE
Safe Work Australia
The Australian Safety and Compensation Council
Comcare
WorkCover (NSW); WorkCare (VIC)
State rehabilitation and labour councils
Workers health centres in most states.

WHS INFORMATION SYSTEMS

Comprehensive workplace data
Accurate records
Disease and accident cost-management
Control of cost reimbursement from insurance
companies
Clear details of rehabilitation programs
Medical programs
Interface with other HR processes.

MANAGING WHS PROGRAMS

Successful WHS programs require:
top management commitment
extensive safety and health promotion, communication,
training and development activities that are integrated and
cost-effective
adequate protective and medical/first aid, diagnostic and
treatment facilities
risk management, recording, analysis and development
systems
consultative mechanisms to investigate, monitor and prevent
actual and potential workplace issues
integrated approaches to accidents/injury/disease,
rehabilitation and workers compensation.

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Table 1. Factor Loadings for Changes to Nursing Work

OTHER PSYCHOLOGICAL
FACTORS IMPORTANT IN
REDUCING STRESS

Thinking back over the past 12 months, how have the following aspects of your
job changed:

1. Administrative aspects of my workload

2. The amount of work I do
3. Contact with and use of computing technology

Empirical evidence from Australia by Teo

and research team (from NZ and
Australia):

4. Amount of contact with patients

5. Quality of contact with patients
6. Opportunities for promotion

Factor 1: Increase
nursing work

7. Amount of support, supervision or consultation with senior staff

or management

Enhance psychological capital resources

(hope, optimism, efficacy, and resilience)

8. Opportunities for training

9. The amount of training I have received

N= 401 Australian nurses [2013]

10. The security of my job

11. Contact with my union or staff association

Mindfulness training

Factor 2: Decrease T&S

12. The number of people I work with on a day-to-day basis

N=451 Australian nurses [2014]

Figure 1. Proposed Research Model

mediator

Mindfulness as a Personal Resource to Reduce Work

Stress: A test of the Job Demands-Resources Model
Emotional
Demands

H5
JD

0.12**

H4
Changes to
Nursing
Work

H1

H11

Role
Stress

H3

-0.11**

Engage

Perceived
Autonomy
Support

.25***

H2

H6
JR
H8
H12

H9

H7

-0.15**
-0.11***

Psychological
Stress

.28***
-0.52***

Job Control

H10
PR
(PsyCap)

Mindfulness

moderator
Context: N=451 Australian nurses experiencing change initiatives to their job

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SUMMARY
Single largest growth issue in HRM
Range of interest groups involved
Comprehensive Australian legislation dates from the
1980s and continues today
Focus is on consultation and prevention
Diverse and changing range of WHS issues
Key area in which HRM can demonstrate contributions.

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