The majority of submissions to the review, across all stakeholder groups, indicate support for inclusion of a duty for workers to take reasonable care for the health and safety of others at the workplace. Of these, most thought that workers should also be required to take reasonable care of themselves.
Some submissions requested that the duties of workers be more specific, by including requirements for workers to:
cooperate with their employer to meet OHS obligations;
follow reasonable instructions in relation to health and safety;
not act in a reckless manner so as to endanger the health or safety of themselves and others; and
report workplace injuries and hazards.
Submissions were divided on whether the model Act should contain a duty of care for ‘others’ at a workplace (those who are not workers and would not otherwise be a duty holder under the model Act e.g. visitors to a workplace). Those who favour the inclusion of a duty for ‘others’ propose that such persons should be required to take care for their own health and safety (some suggesting this be that they are not reckless), and be required to follow instructions related to health and safety. Those opposed to placing a duty of care under the model Act on ‘others’ argue that the duty would be unnecessary as it is provided for at common law.
