HSC Business Services (VET) key terms

The legal and moral obligation of employers and workers to take reasonable steps to protect the health and safety of everyone affected by the workplace, including customers, contractors and visitors.

Any source or situation with the potential to cause harm to a person, property or the environment, such as a wet floor, faulty wiring or an aggressive customer.

The likelihood that a hazard will actually cause harm, combined with how serious that harm could be. Risk is assessed so controls can be prioritised sensibly.

A ranked order of risk treatments, from most to least effective: eliminate the hazard, substitute it, use engineering controls, apply administrative controls, then use personal protective equipment.

The action taken to remove or reduce a hazard and its associated risk, chosen after assessment and reviewed regularly to check it is still working.

Clothing or equipment worn by a worker to reduce exposure to hazards, such as gloves, safety glasses, aprons or closed-toe shoes. It is the last line of defence.

A written record completed after an accident, near miss, injury or property damage, capturing what happened, who was involved and any immediate action taken.

Any activity requiring a person to lift, lower, push, pull, carry or otherwise move a load by physical force. Poor technique is a common cause of workplace injury.

The documented steps employees follow when an emergency requires the workplace to be emptied, including alarm signals, exit routes, assembly points and wardens' instructions.

A prepared set of instructions covering how a business will respond to fire, medical, security or natural emergencies, including roles, alarms, exits and post-emergency review.

The obligation to keep private information secure and share it only with people who are authorised and need it for a legitimate business purpose.

Rules governing how personal information is collected, used, stored, disclosed and destroyed, giving individuals rights to access and correct their own information.

A written statement of the standards of behaviour expected of employees, covering honesty, respect, conflicts of interest, dress and use of company resources.

Acting in line with accepted moral principles and organisational values, even when no rule specifically covers the situation or when no one is watching.

A situation where a person's private interests, relationships or financial dealings could improperly influence their work decisions or duties to the organisation.

The range of differences among people in a workplace, including age, gender, cultural background, ability, religion and experience, which should be respected and valued.

The principle that all applicants and employees are treated fairly in recruitment, promotion, training and pay, based on merit rather than irrelevant personal characteristics.

Laws and workplace practices that prevent unfair treatment of people because of attributes such as sex, race, disability, age or family responsibilities.

Repeated unreasonable behaviour directed at a worker that creates a risk to health and safety, such as intimidation, humiliation, exclusion or spreading rumours.

Unwelcome conduct that offends, intimidates or humiliates a person, including sexual harassment and comments about race, religion, disability or appearance.

The formal steps an employee follows to raise a complaint about treatment at work, including who to tell, timeframes, investigation and options for appeal.

The main Australian law setting minimum employment standards, award conditions, unfair dismissal rules and the framework for enterprise bargaining and industrial action.

Eleven minimum entitlements that apply to all national system employees, covering hours, leave types, notice, redundancy pay and fair work information statements.

An industry or occupation-based legal document that sets minimum wages, classifications, penalties, allowances and conditions for employees covered by it.

A collective agreement negotiated between an employer and employees, approved by the Fair Work Commission, that sets terms and conditions for a specific workplace.

A legally binding agreement between employer and employee setting out the role, pay, hours and conditions of work, which cannot undercut legal minimums.

The structured process of introducing a new employee to the workplace, including policies, safety procedures, facilities, colleagues and expectations of the role.

Skill development delivered in the actual workplace while performing real tasks, often through demonstration, coaching and supervised practice by an experienced colleague.

A formal review of an employee's work against agreed goals and standards, usually involving feedback, discussion of development needs and future objectives.

Information given to a person about how their work or behaviour was received, ideally specific, timely and focused on actions rather than personality.

A supportive one-to-one process where a more experienced person asks questions and gives guidance to help someone improve skills and solve work problems.

Agreed benchmarks describing the quality of service a business promises, such as response times, greeting scripts, accuracy and complaint resolution targets.

A documented commitment between a service provider and a client specifying what services will be delivered, to what standard and within what timeframes.

An expression of dissatisfaction about a product, service or experience that must be recorded, investigated and resolved according to organisational procedure.

The process of addressing disagreement between people by clarifying issues, listening to each side and negotiating a workable solution, often with a neutral third party.

A measurable value used to judge how well a person, team or process is achieving an important objective, such as calls answered or errors per hundred transactions.

The ongoing effort to refine processes, products and services by identifying inefficiencies, testing changes and standardising what works.

Planned activities and checks designed to ensure products or services consistently meet specified standards before they reach the customer.

The systematic control of documents and data through their lifecycle, including creation, storage, retrieval, retention periods, archiving and secure disposal.

Operating in a way that meets present needs without compromising resources for the future, including reducing waste, energy use and environmental impact.