Psychosocial risk at work: what Australian employers need to know

If you're an Australian employer, managing psychosocial risk is no longer optional. Model WHS regulation changes introduced in 2023 now formally require employers to identify, assess, and control psychosocial hazards in the workplace, treating them with the same seriousness as physical hazards.

Here is what you need to know.

What is a psychosocial hazard?

A psychosocial hazard is anything that could cause psychological harm at work. This includes how work is designed and managed, the working environment, and workplace interactions and behaviours.

Common examples include excessive workload, poor role clarity, lack of support, bullying, harassment, low job control, and exposure to traumatic events. These hazards can cause psychological harm such as anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as physical harm including musculoskeletal injuries and fatigue-related illness.

What changed in 2023?

The model WHS Regulation amendments for psychosocial risks commenced in April 2023 and apply across all model WHS jurisdictions. The exception is Victoria, which has its own occupational health and safety framework.

For the first time, the Work Health and Safety Regulations explicitly prescribe how employers must identify and manage hazards and risks to workers' psychological health and safety. Before these changes, psychological health was covered under the general duty of care. The 2023 regulations made these obligations explicit.

In July 2025, NSW went further by introducing a positive duty on psychosocial hazards, requiring employers to proactively prevent harm rather than simply respond to it. This makes NSW one of the more stringent jurisdictions on psychosocial risk.

What are employers required to do?

Under the WHS framework, employers, referred to as persons conducting a business or undertaking or PCBUs, must:

Identify psychosocial hazards in consultation with workers. Assess the risks those hazards create, considering the duration, frequency, and severity of exposure. Implement control measures that are reasonably practicable. Review those measures regularly and update them as needed.

Compliance is not a one-time task. PCBUs should regularly assess the effectiveness of implemented control measures, seek worker feedback, and refine policies based on emerging risks or legislative updates.

What does "reasonably practicable" mean?

This is a key legal concept in Australian WHS law. It means employers are not expected to eliminate every possible risk, but they are expected to do what a reasonable person in their position would do, given what they know about the hazard and what is technically and financially feasible to address it.

What about Victoria?

Victoria has its own framework. The Occupational Health and Safety (Psychological Health) Regulations 2025 commenced in December 2025 and established standalone obligations for psychosocial risk management, requiring employers to identify hazards such as work design, systems of work, and interpersonal interactions.

What happens if employers do not comply?

In October 2023, Court Services Victoria was prosecuted, pleaded guilty and fined $379,157 for failing to properly identify and assess risks in relation to the psychological wellbeing of its employees. This case made clear that regulators are willing to prosecute, and that the cost of non-compliance can be significant.

How HowsWork helps

HowsWork is designed to help employers meet these obligations in a practical way. It gives employees a safe, anonymous channel to raise concerns, automatically logs and categorises risks against recognised psychosocial hazard categories, and builds an audit-ready risk register so you can demonstrate you are actively managing psychosocial risk.