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Health and safety compliance means meeting the legal duties that apply to your farm. In practice, that means doing what's reasonably practicable to protect workers, contractors, visitors and anyone else on-farm from harm.
In Australia, those duties come from work health and safety (WHS) laws, regulations and codes of practice. Victoria has its own OHS laws, so you'll hear occupational health and safety (OHS) used there.
A safety policy in the office drawer isn't the same as compliance. Compliance happens in the paddock, the shed and the yards. It's how you manage risks each day, and how you record it.
Getting this right matters. Agriculture has the highest worker fatality rate of any Australian industry. Safe Work Australia's figures show 44 workers in agriculture, forestry and fishing died at work in 2024. That's 13.7 deaths for every 100,000 workers.
What does health and safety compliance mean for an agribusiness?
For an agribusiness, health and safety compliance means identifying and managing workplace risks and taking steps to provide a safe working environment.
This can include:
- Providing and maintaining a safe workplace
- Identifying hazards and assessing and controlling risks
- Providing safe machinery, equipment and structures
- Establishing safe systems of work
- Providing information, training, instruction and supervision
- Managing the safe use, handling and storage of substances and equipment
- Providing suitable workplace facilities
- Consulting with workers about health and safety
- Monitoring workplace conditions and reviewing safety controls
- Keeping health and safety records
The specific requirements that apply to your farm will depend on your location, business activities, workforce and the risks involved in your operation.
What are workers responsible for?
Health and safety is a shared responsibility. Workers also have obligations to take reasonable care of their own health and safety, avoid putting others at risk and follow reasonable workplace health and safety instructions and procedures.
For example, workers may be required to:
- Follow safe work procedures
- Use machinery and equipment as instructed
- Complete required training
- Report hazards, incidents and near misses
- Use required personal protective equipment
- Follow workplace health and safety policies and instructions
Who regulates workplace health and safety in Australia?
Safe Work Australia develops national WHS policy and the model WHS laws, but it isn’t a WHS regulator. WHS/OHS laws are regulated and enforced by the relevant state, territory or Commonwealth regulator.
For example:
- New South Wales: SafeWork NSW
- Victoria: WorkSafe Victoria
- Queensland: Workplace Health and Safety Queensland
- South Australia: SafeWork SA
- Western Australia: WorkSafe WA
- Tasmania: WorkSafe Tasmania
- Australian Capital Territory: WorkSafe ACT
- Northern Territory: NT WorkSafe
- Commonwealth: Comcare
Safe Work Australia's WHS regulators and workers' compensation authorities page provides current regulator contacts and information for each jurisdiction.
Always check the WHS legislation and regulator that applies to your state or territory, as requirements can vary between jurisdictions.
What happens if a farm isn’t compliant with WHS requirements?
A business may be considered non-compliant when it fails to meet the health and safety duties or requirements that apply to its operations.
Non-compliance can occur in many ways. For example, an agribusiness may fail to properly manage a known risk, provide appropriate training or supervision, maintain equipment or keep required records.
The consequences depend on the circumstances and the legislation that applies. They can include improvement notices, penalties, prosecution or other regulatory action.
However, compliance shouldn’t be viewed simply as avoiding fines. The purpose of health and safety requirements is to help businesses identify and manage risks before someone is seriously injured or harmed.
Why is health and safety compliance important in agriculture?
Agriculture involves a wide range of workplace hazards, including machinery, vehicles, livestock, chemicals, working at heights, remote locations and changing environmental conditions.
Effective health and safety management helps agribusinesses:
- Identify and manage workplace risks
- Keep workers and contractors informed and trained
- Maintain machinery and equipment safely
- Record incidents, hazards and corrective actions
- Keep important safety information organised
- Demonstrate how risks are being managed
- Review whether safety controls are working
- Respond to changing workplace risks and requirements
For farms with multiple workers, contractors, locations or types of equipment, keeping track of these activities can become increasingly difficult when information is spread across paper forms, spreadsheets and different systems.
What is safety and compliance software for farming?
Safety and compliance software helps farms and agribusinesses manage health and safety information, processes and records in one place.
Depending on the system, this can include tools for:
- Risk assessments and hazard management
- Incident and near-miss reporting
- Worker records and training
- Licences and competency tracking
- Machinery and asset records
- Inspections and pre-starts
- Actions and corrective actions
- Policies and procedures
- Contractor management
- Safety documentation and records
Digital systems can also make it easier to find information, track outstanding actions and maintain records across different workers, assets, sites and locations.
The value of safety and compliance software isn’t that the software itself makes a business compliant. A digital system supports the processes, records and evidence that form part of an effective safety management approach.
How can farms improve health and safety compliance?
Improving compliance starts with understanding the requirements that apply to your agribusiness and turning them into practical processes your team can follow.
Here's where to start:
- Identify the requirements that apply to your operation
Understand the WHS laws, regulations, codes of practice and other requirements relevant to your location and activities. - Identify workplace hazards and risks
Consider machinery, vehicles, livestock, chemicals, contractors, remote work and other activities specific to your operation. - Put controls and safe work procedures in place
Make sure workers understand how work should be completed safely. - Provide training and supervision
Keep track of required training, licences, competencies and refresher requirements. - Keep records
Document inspections, incidents, training, risk assessments, actions and other safety activities. - Review and improve
Regularly review your controls, records and processes to identify gaps and respond to changes.
Health and safety compliance is an ongoing process
Compliance isn't something you tick off once. Workers come and go, machinery changes and every season brings new risks. Your safety management needs to keep up.
The good news is you don't have to tackle it all at once. It often helps to start with one area, like inductions or pre-starts. Get that working well, then move to the next. A little bit of work each day adds up.
Paper, spreadsheets or software, the tool matters less than the habit. What counts is that your team follows the process and you've got the records to show it.
Topics: Safety Management System
FAQ
What is health and safety compliance?
Health and safety compliance means meeting the WHS duties and legal requirements that apply to your business, including managing risks, providing training and supervision, maintaining safe workplaces and keeping relevant records.
What does WHS compliance mean for a farm?
WHS compliance means taking reasonably practicable steps to protect workers and others from farm-related risks, including managing machinery, training workers, supervising contractors and keeping safety records. Requirements vary by state or territory and the activities you undertake.
What are a farm business's main WHS duties?
A farm business must do what's reasonably practicable to keep workers and others safe. WHS laws call this duty holder a PCBU (person conducting a business or undertaking). Its duties include providing a safe workplace, safe equipment, safe systems of work, and the training and supervision workers need.
What happens if a business is not WHS compliant?
Businesses that fail to meet their WHS duties may face regulatory action, including notices, fines or prosecution. Poor risk management can also increase the likelihood of workplace injury or harm.
How can farmers improve WHS compliance?
Farmers can improve WHS compliance by understanding their requirements, managing risks, training and supervising workers, maintaining equipment, consulting with workers and keeping accurate safety records. Regular reviews can help identify and address gaps.
Disclaimer: Content on this website may be of relevance to users outside of Australia, but content links and examples are specific to Australia. Please check with your local authority for your country and industry requirements.
