Occupational health and safety legislation, regulations and standards
What this domain tests
This domain - OHS legislation, regulations and standards - tests whether you can find the legal duty behind a scenario, identify who owes it, and separate enforceable law from guidance. Questions commonly mix statutes, regulations, approved codes and consensus standards, then ask what the employer must do first.
Core rules
- Hierarchy of sources. Primary legislation creates duties; implementing regulations and ministerial decisions add detail; approved codes and guidance explain compliance but do not create new duties; consensus standards such as ISO or ANSI become mandatory only when incorporated by law or contract.
- General duties. Employers must provide a safe workplace and system of work, competent supervision, information, instruction and training, free PPE, and health surveillance where risk requires it. Workers must follow controls, report hazards and defects, and not misuse equipment.
- Reasonably practicable. The duty is not absolute where the law uses this test: compare risk against the cost, time and difficulty of control, but gross disproportion is needed before accepting a serious risk.
- Enforcement. Inspectors can issue improvement or prohibition notices, require records, and prosecute. Reportable incidents, occupational diseases and dangerous occurrences have defined timeframes.
- Consultation. Workers and their representatives must be consulted on matters affecting their health and safety, including changes to work and control measures.
Worked example
A bakery installs a second-hand dough mixer with an unguarded nip point. The manager argues that the machine carries a CE mark and was built to ISO 12100, so no further action is needed. The correct reasoning: the CE mark and standard are evidence of design conformity, not proof that the particular installation is safe. The employer must assess the actual risk, fit guarding that prevents access, train operators, inspect and maintain the guard, and consult the workers. If the risk is serious and immediate, an inspector could prohibit use. The legal duty is to reduce risk so far as is reasonably practicable, not merely to hold a certificate.
Traps that cost marks
- Treating certification or a standard as a legal defence.
- Confusing reasonably practicable with best practice or with absolute duty.
- Forgetting worker duties and consultation.
- Quoting guidance as if it were statute.
- Missing recordkeeping and incident reporting timeframes.