Category 1: Breach of duty of care of worker or other person at a workplace where:
there was serious harm to any person (fatality or serious injury) to whom a duty is owed or a high risk of such harm; and
the duty holder has been reckless or grossly negligent.
$300,000
Category 2: Breach of duty of care of worker or other person at a workplace where there was a high risk of serious harm to any persons to whom a duty is owed.
$150,000
Category 3: Other breach of duty of care of worker or other person at a workplace
$50,000
In making this recommendation, we emphasise that our overall objective is to increase compliance with the Act and decrease the resort to prosecution to achieve that aim. The higher penalties would, in our view, have a salutary effect in raising commitment to good OHS. It must be recognised, however, that the application of the highest levels of fines would, for a variety of legal and practical reasons, continue to be rare.
