Work Health and Safety and Industry Compliance in Tourism, Travel and Events
The duty-of-care framework
Every tourism, travel and events workplace sits inside a hierarchy of obligations. Know the difference between a duty holder (PCBU, officers, workers, volunteers, visitors) and a regulator. The primary duty is to ensure health and safety so far as is reasonably practicable - a phrase that tests whether a control was possible, not whether it was convenient. Questions often reward the hierarchy of control: eliminate the risk, substitute, engineer (guards, barriers), administrate (signage, rotation, briefings), then PPE last. A common trap is choosing "provide PPE" when elimination was feasible.
Consultation, reporting and records
Workers must be consulted on matters affecting them; know the role of health and safety representatives and committees. Incident response follows a sequence: make the area safe, provide first aid, notify, preserve the scene, record. Notifiable incidents (death, serious injury or illness, dangerous incident) trigger regulator notification, usually immediately by phone followed by written notice. Near misses are recorded too - they are leading indicators.
Industry-specific compliance
Events add crowd management, temporary structures, electrical tagging, food safety (temperature control, allergen communication), responsible service of alcohol, and public liability. Travel adds duty to warn about destinations, accurate product disclosure and privacy of passenger data. Licensing (travel agent registration where applicable), permits, council approvals and insurance are compliance layers candidates routinely confuse with WHS.
Worked rule of thumb
The risk matrix rule: likelihood × consequence gives a rating; the rating dictates the response time and who signs off. If a hazard rates high, escalate before the shift starts, not during it.
Trap: confusing a hazard (potential source of harm) with a risk (the chance and severity of harm).