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Queensland
Workplace Health and Safety
and Other Acts Amendment
Bill 2006
Queensland
Workplace Health and Safety and Other
Acts Amendment Bill 2006
Contents
Page
Part 1 Preliminary
1 Short title . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Part 2 Amendment of Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995
2 Act amended in pt 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3 Amendment of s 7 (Objective of Act) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4 Insertion of new pt 7A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Part 7A Authorised representatives
Division 1 Purpose
90A Purpose of part. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Division 2 Definitions
90B Definitions for part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Division 3 Appointment of authorised representatives
90C Application for appointment as authorised
representative ........................... 7
90D Appointment of authorised representative . . . . . . . . . 8
90E Limitation of authorised representative's powers . . . . 9
90F Authorised representative's appointment conditions . 9
90G Employee organisation must give notice . . . . . . . . . . 9
90H Authorised representative's identity card . . . . . . . . . . 10
Division 4 Authorised representatives' powers
90I Powers if a suspected contravention of the Act
involves workplace health and safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
90J Powers for discussing workplace health and safety . . 12
90K Notice of entry or exercise of particular power . . . . . . 13
90L Production of authorised representative's identity
card ................................ 13
90M When powers may not be exercised. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
90N Conduct of authorised representative . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Division 5 Suspension, cancellation, or amendment of
conditions, of appointment
Subdivision 1 Preliminary
90O Application to suspend or cancel appointment, or
amendment of conditions of appointment . . . . . . . . . 15
90P Decision on application may be given on the papers
or at a hearing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Subdivision 2 Decisions on the papers
90Q Applications decided on the papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Subdivision 3 Decisions at hearings
90R Applications decided at a hearing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5 Amendment of s 99 (Appointment). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6 Amendment of pt 11 (Appeals). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
7 Amendment of s 147A (Definitions for pt 11) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
8 Insertion of new pt 11, div 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Division 3 Appeals to industrial commission
151A Who may appeal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
151B How to start appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
151C Stay of operation of decisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
151D Hearing procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
151E Powers of commission on appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
9 Amendment of pt 11, div 4, hdg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
10 Amendment of s 171 (False or misleading statements) . . . . . . . . 22
11 Amendment of s 172 (False, misleading or incomplete
documents) ..................................... 22
12 Insertion of new s 173A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
173A Obstructing authorised representatives . . . . . . . . . . . 23
13 Amendment of s 174 (Discrimination or victimisation) . . . . . . . . . 23
14 Amendment of s 175 (Employers and principal contractor not to
encourage refusal to answer questions). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
15 Amendment of s 176 (Impersonating inspectors and others). . . . 24
16 Amendment of sch 3 (Dictionary) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Part 3 Amendment of Workers' Compensation and Rehabilitation
Act 2003
17 Act amended in pt 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
18 Amendment of s 107E (Authority's board may approve amount
payable under industrial instrument) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
3
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
19 Amendment of s 108 (Compensation entitlement) . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
20 Replacement of s 142 (Application of pt 8) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
142 Application of pt 8. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
21 Amendment of s 144 (When employer must pay worker for day
of injury) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
22 Insertion of new ch 4, pt 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Part 6 Protection for injured workers
232A Definitions for pt 6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
232B Dismissal of injured worker only after 12 months . . . . 27
232C Replacement for injured worker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
232D Reinstatement of injured worker. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
232E Application to industrial commission . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
232F Powers of industrial commission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
232G Preservation of worker's rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
23 Replacement of ch 13, pt 3, div 1 hdg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
24 Amendment of s 548A (Meaning of appeal body) . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
25 Insertion of new ch 13, pt 3, div 1A hdg and new s 560A . . . . . . 30
Division 1A Appeal to Industrial Court
560A Application of div 1A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
26 Amendment of s 561 (Appeal from appeal body to Industrial
Court) ......................................... 31
27 Amendment of s 562 (Powers of Industrial Court) . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
28 Insertion of new ch 13, pt 3, div 1B hdg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
29 Amendment of s 566 (Decision about payment of compensation) 32
30 Amendment of sch 6 (Dictionary) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Part 4 Amendment of Industrial Relations Act 1999
31 Act amended in pt 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
32 Omission of ch 3, pt 5. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
33 Amendment of sch 5 (Dictionary) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
2006
A Bill
for
An Act to amend the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995,
and for other purposes
s1 6 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
The Parliament of Queensland enacts-- 1
Part 1 Preliminary 2
Clause 1 Short title 3
This Act may be cited as the Workplace Health and Safety and 4
Other Acts Amendment Act 2006. 5
Part 2 Amendment of Workplace 6
Health and Safety Act 1995 7
Clause 2 Act amended in pt 2 8
This part amends the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995. 9
Clause 3 Amendment of s 7 (Objective of Act) 10
Section 7(3)(f)-- 11
insert-- 12
`(iv) authorised representatives to help workers with 13
workplace health and safety issues; and'. 14
Clause 4 Insertion of new pt 7A 15
After section 90-- 16
insert-- 17
s4 7 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`Part 7A Authorised representatives 1
`Division 1 Purpose 2
`90A Purpose of part 3
`The purpose of this part is to provide authorised 4
representatives of employee organisations with a capacity to 5
contribute to workplace health and safety in workplaces and 6
relevant workplace areas. 7
`Division 2 Definitions 8
`90B Definitions for part 9
`In this part-- 10
authorised representative means a person appointed as an 11
authorised representative under section 90D. 12
eligible member, of an employee organisation, means a 13
person who is, or is eligible to be, a member of the employee 14
organisation. 15
employee organisation means-- 16
(a) an employee organisation under the Industrial Relations 17
Act 1999; or 18
(b) an organisation of employees under the Workplace 19
Relations Act 1996 (Cwlth). 20
`Division 3 Appointment of authorised 21
representatives 22
`90C Application for appointment as authorised 23
representative 24
`(1) An employee organisation may apply, in the approved form, 25
to the industrial registrar for appointment of a person as an 26
authorised representative for the employee organisation. 27
s4 8 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`(2) An employee organisation must not apply for appointment of 1
a person as an authorised representative unless the person is 2
an employee of, or holds an office with, the employee 3
organisation. 4
Maximum penalty--40 penalty units. 5
`(3) A regulation may prescribe matters for an application under 6
subsection (1), including, for example, documents required to 7
support the application. 8
`90D Appointment of authorised representative 9
`(1) The industrial registrar may appoint a person as an authorised 10
representative for an employee organisation, for a specified 11
term of not more than 3 years, if-- 12
(a) the person is an employee of, or holds an office with, the 13
employee organisation; and 14
(b) the person has satisfactorily finished training approved 15
by the chief executive for this section; and 16
(c) the industrial commission has not, within the previous 3 17
years, cancelled an appointment of the person as an 18
authorised representative. 19
`(2) The industrial registrar may appoint the person as an 20
authorised representative for the employee organisation-- 21
(a) for the first appointment--if the person has 22
satisfactorily finished the training mentioned in 23
subsection (1)(b) within the previous 3 years; or 24
(b) for each later appointment--if the person has 25
satisfactorily finished the training mentioned in 26
subsection (1)(b) within the previous 6 years. 27
`(3) The industrial registrar may impose conditions on the 28
appointment of a person as an authorised representative. 29
`(4) To remove any doubt, it is declared that more than 1 person 30
may be appointed as an authorised representative for an 31
employee organisation. 32
`(5) Also, it is declared that training approved for this section for a 33
person's appointment as an authorised representative may be 34
s4 9 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
training that was available, and had been undertaken by the 1
person, before the commencement of this section. 2
`90E Limitation of authorised representative's powers 3
`The powers of an authorised representative may be limited-- 4
(a) under a regulation; or 5
(b) by a condition of appointment imposed under section 6
90D or amended under section 90Q(4)(a) or 90R(5)(a). 7
`90F Authorised representative's appointment conditions 8
`(1) A person is appointed as an authorised representative on the 9
conditions stated in the instrument of appointment under 10
section 90D or to which the person is subject under section 11
90Q(4)(a) or 90R(5)(a). 12
`(2) A person's appointment as an authorised representative ends 13
when whichever of the following first happens-- 14
(a) the person's term of appointment ends; 15
(b) the person stops being an employee of, or holding office 16
with, the employee organisation stated in the person's 17
instrument of appointment; 18
(c) the person's appointment is cancelled under section 90Q 19
or 90R; 20
(d) the person, or the employee organisation for whom the 21
person is an authorised representative, surrenders the 22
person's identity card by returning it, with a notice of 23
surrender, to the industrial registrar. 24
`90G Employee organisation must give notice 25
`(1) This section applies if an authorised representative for an 26
employee organisation stops being an employee of, or holding 27
office with, the employee organisation. 28
s4 10 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`(2) As soon as reasonably practicable, but not more than 14 days 1
afterwards, the employee organisation must give the industrial 2
registrar written notice of that happening. 3
Maximum penalty--40 penalty units. 4
`90H Authorised representative's identity card 5
`(1) The industrial registrar must give each authorised 6
representative an identity card. 7
`(2) The identity card must-- 8
(a) contain a recent photo of the authorised representative; 9
and 10
(b) be signed by the authorised representative; and 11
(c) identify the person as a person appointed as an 12
authorised representative under this part; and 13
(d) state an expiry date. 14
`(3) An authorised representative must return the person's identity 15
card to the industrial registrar as soon as possible, but within 16
21 days, after-- 17
(a) the person stops being an authorised representative; or 18
(b) the person's appointment as an authorised representative 19
is suspended under this part; 20
unless the person has a reasonable excuse. 21
Maximum penalty for subsection (3)--10 penalty units. 22
`Division 4 Authorised representatives' powers 23
`90I Powers if a suspected contravention of the Act 24
involves workplace health and safety 25
`(1) An authorised representative for an employee organisation 26
may enter a place if-- 27
(a) the place is a workplace or a relevant workplace area; 28
and 29
s4 11 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(b) a worker working at the place is an eligible member of 1
the employee organisation; and 2
(c) the authorised representative reasonably suspects that a 3
contravention of the Act involving workplace health and 4
safety has happened or is happening at the place that 5
relates to or affects an eligible member of the employee 6
organisation at the place. 7
`(2) After entering the place, the authorised representative may-- 8
(a) inspect any plant, substance or other thing at the place 9
relevant to the suspected contravention mentioned in 10
subsection (1)(c); or 11
(b) observe work carried on at the place; or 12
(c) speak to a person, with the person's consent, who is an 13
eligible member of the employee organisation; or 14
(d) speak to the occupier of the place about anything 15
relevant to the suspected contravention mentioned in 16
subsection (1)(c); or 17
(e) require the production for inspection of documents, 18
including employment records, relevant to the suspected 19
contravention mentioned in subsection (1)(c); or 20
(f) copy a document at the place relevant to the suspected 21
contravention mentioned in subsection (1)(c); or 22
(g) require the occupier to give the authorised representative 23
reasonable help to exercise the authorised 24
representative's powers under paragraphs (a) to (f). 25
`(3) A person required to give reasonable help under subsection 26
(2)(g) must comply with the requirement, unless the person 27
has a reasonable excuse. 28
Maximum penalty--40 penalty units. 29
`(4) If the requirement is to be complied with by the person giving 30
information, or producing a document, it is a reasonable 31
excuse for the person, if the person is an individual, to fail to 32
comply with the requirement, if complying with the 33
requirement might tend to incriminate the person. 34
`(5) In this section-- 35
s4 12 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
employment records means a record relating to the 1
employment of a worker-- 2
(a) setting out the type of industrial instrument regulating 3
the employment of the worker; or 4
(b) relating to any of the following matters-- 5
(i) hours of work; 6
(ii) overtime; 7
(iii) remuneration or other benefits; 8
(iv) leave; 9
(v) superannuation contributions; 10
(vi) termination of employment; 11
(vii) type of employment, including whether the 12
employment is permanent, temporary, casual, 13
full-time or part-time; 14
(viii) personal details of the worker; 15
(ix) another matter prescribed under a regulation. 16
`90J Powers for discussing workplace health and safety 17
`(1) An authorised representative for an employee organisation 18
may enter a place for the purpose of discussing matters 19
relating to workplace health and safety at the place with a 20
worker at the place if-- 21
(a) the place is a workplace or a relevant workplace area; 22
and 23
(b) a worker working at the place is an eligible member of 24
the employee organisation. 25
`(2) After entering the place, the authorised representative may 26
discuss matters relating to workplace health and safety at the 27
place with a worker who-- 28
(a) is an eligible member of the employee organisation; and 29
(b) wishes to take part in the discussion. 30
s4 13 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`(3) A discussion mentioned in subsection (2) may take place only 1
when the worker is on a work break, including a meal break. 2
`90K Notice of entry or exercise of particular power 3
`(1) This section applies for the entry into a place under this part 4
by an authorised representative. 5
`(2) The authorised representative must give the occupier of the 6
place written notice of the entry and the reasons for the 7
entry-- 8
(a) for entry under section 90J--at least 24 hours before the 9
entry; or 10
(b) otherwise--as soon as practicable after the entry. 11
`(3) For entry in any case, the authorised representative must, as 12
soon as practicable after entry, tell the occupier of his or her 13
presence. 14
`(4) For the exercise of the power to inspect, or produce, 15
documents that are employment records on entry under 16
section 90I, the authorised representative must at least 24 17
hours before exercising the power, give the occupier written 18
notice of his or her intention to exercise the power and the 19
reasons for the exercise of the power. 20
`90L Production of authorised representative's identity 21
card 22
`An authorised representative must not remain at a place 23
entered under this part if the authorised representative does 24
not produce the authorised representative's identity card for 25
inspection if required by the occupier of the place. 26
`90M When powers may not be exercised 27
`(1) An authorised representative must not, under this part-- 28
(a) enter any part of a place that is used as domestic 29
premises, without the consent of the occupier of the 30
place; or 31
s4 14 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(b) enter any part of a place, or exercise any power at the 1
place, if, under another Act, the authorised 2
representative is not permitted to enter the part of the 3
place or exercise the power at the place. 4
`(2) An authorised representative must not enter or remain at a 5
place, under this part, if-- 6
(a) the occupier of the place requests the authorised 7
representative to comply with a workplace health and 8
safety requirement that applies to the place; and 9
(b) the request is a reasonable request; and 10
(c) the authorised representative fails to comply with the 11
request. 12
13
Example of an unreasonable request--
14
requiring an authorised representative to undertake a
15
site-specific induction if the authorised representative would
16
normally be accompanied on the site by someone who had
17
undertaken the induction
`90N Conduct of authorised representative 18
`(1) An authorised representative for an employee organisation 19
must not, while acting or purporting to act under this part-- 20
(a) unreasonably hinder or obstruct a worker or other 21
person at a workplace or relevant workplace area; or 22
(b) intimidate or threaten a worker or other person at a 23
workplace or relevant workplace area. 24
`(2) An authorised representative for an employee organisation 25
may exercise or purport to exercise a power under this part 26
only for a purpose relating to the workplace health and safety 27
of an eligible member of the employee organisation. 28
`(3) Also, an authorised representative for an employee 29
organisation may use or disclose information acquired at a 30
place under this part only-- 31
(a) for a purpose relating to the workplace health and safety 32
of an eligible member of the employee organisation; or 33
s4 15 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(b) with the consent of the person to whom the information 1
relates. 2
3
Example of information--
4
information from employment records
5
Note--
6
A contravention of this section is not an offence. However, it may
7
result in suspension or cancellation of the authorised
8
representative's appointment or an amendment of a condition of the
9
appointment.
`Division 5 Suspension, cancellation, or 10
amendment of conditions, of 11
appointment 12
`Subdivision 1 Preliminary 13
`90O Application to suspend or cancel appointment, or 14
amendment of conditions of appointment 15
`The following persons may apply to the industrial 16
commission to suspend or cancel the appointment of an 17
authorised representative for an employee organisation, or 18
amend the conditions of the appointment-- 19
(a) the chief executive; 20
(b) an occupier of a place entered into by an authorised 21
representative. 22
`90P Decision on application may be given on the papers 23
or at a hearing 24
`The industrial commission may decide whether or not to take 25
action on an application under section 90O entirely or partly 26
from a consideration of the documents filed. 27
s4 16 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`Subdivision 2 Decisions on the papers 1
`90Q Applications decided on the papers 2
`(1) This section applies if the industrial commission decides to 3
decide the application after a consideration of the documents 4
filed and without a hearing. 5
`(2) The industrial commission must give the applicant, the 6
authorised representative and the employee organisation a 7
written notice stating-- 8
(a) the industrial commission is considering suspending or 9
cancelling the authorised representative's appointment 10
or amending the conditions of the appointment (the 11
proposed action); and 12
(b) the reason for the proposed action; and 13
(c) if the proposed action is amendment of a condition of 14
the appointment, the proposed amendment; and 15
(d) if the proposed action is suspension of the appointment, 16
the proposed suspension period; and 17
(e) an invitation-- 18
(i) to the authorised representative to show in writing, 19
within a stated time of at least 14 days after the 20
date of the notice, why the proposed action should 21
not be taken; and 22
(ii) to the applicant to comment in writing, within a 23
stated time of at least 14 days after the date of the 24
notice, on the appropriateness of the proposed 25
action. 26
`(3) The industrial commission may take action under subsection 27
(4) if, after considering all documents filed in the application 28
and all written submissions made within the time allowed 29
under subsection (2)(e), the industrial commission-- 30
(a) is satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that the 31
authorised representative has contravened a provision of 32
this part or a condition of the appointment; and 33
s4 17 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(b) considers the appointment should be suspended or 1
cancelled or a condition amended. 2
`(4) The industrial commission may-- 3
(a) if the proposed action is to amend a condition of the 4
appointment--amend the condition of the appointment 5
in the way stated in the notice; or 6
(b) if the proposed action is to suspend the 7
appointment--suspend the appointment for no longer 8
than the proposed suspension period; or 9
(c) if the proposed action is to cancel the 10
appointment--cancel the appointment or suspend it for 11
a period. 12
`(5) The industrial commission must give the applicant, the 13
authorised representative and the employee organisation a 14
written notice stating-- 15
(a) the decision; and 16
(b) the reasons for the decision; and 17
(c) that the applicant, the authorised representative or the 18
employee organisation may appeal against the decision 19
under part 11. 20
`(6) In this section-- 21
applicant means-- 22
(a) if the application under section 90O was made by the 23
chief executive--the chief executive; or 24
(b) if the application under section 90O was made by an 25
occupier of a place entered into by an authorised 26
representative--the occupier and the chief executive. 27
`Subdivision 3 Decisions at hearings 28
`90R Applications decided at a hearing 29
`(1) This section applies if the industrial commission decides to 30
decide the application at a hearing. 31
s4 18 s4
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`(2) The industrial commission must give the applicant, the 1
authorised representative and the employee organisation at 2
least 14 days notice of the hearing date. 3
`(3) To the extent practicable, the hearing is to be conducted under 4
the rules applying to hearings of the industrial commission 5
under the Industrial Relations Act 1999 with necessary 6
changes or, if the rules make no provision or insufficient 7
provision, in accordance with directions of the industrial 8
commission. 9
`(4) The industrial commission may take action under subsection 10
(5) if, after considering the evidence and submissions in 11
relation to the application, the industrial commission-- 12
(a) is satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that the 13
authorised representative has contravened a provision of 14
this part or a condition of the appointment; and 15
(b) considers the appointment should be suspended or 16
cancelled or a condition amended. 17
`(5) The industrial commission may-- 18
(a) amend the condition of the appointment; or 19
(b) suspend the appointment for a stated period; or 20
(c) cancel the appointment. 21
`(6) The industrial commission must give the applicant, the 22
authorised representative and the employee organisation a 23
written notice stating-- 24
(a) the decision; and 25
(b) the reasons for the decision; and 26
(c) that the applicant, the authorised representative or the 27
employee organisation may appeal against the decision 28
under part 11. 29
`(7) In this section-- 30
applicant means-- 31
(a) if the application under section 90O was made by the 32
chief executive--the chief executive; or 33
s5 19 s8
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(b) if the application under section 90O was made by an 1
occupier of a place entered into by an authorised 2
representative--the occupier and the chief executive.'. 3
Clause 5 Amendment of s 99 (Appointment) 4
Section 99(b), after `executive'-- 5
insert-- 6
`for this section'. 7
Clause 6 Amendment of pt 11 (Appeals) 8
Part 11, divisions 1A, 1 and 2-- 9
renumber as part 11, divisions 1, 2 and 4. 10
Clause 7 Amendment of s 147A (Definitions for pt 11) 11
Section 147A, definition original decision-- 12
omit, insert-- 13
`original decision-- 14
(a) for division 2, means a decision of an inspector; or 15
(b) for division 3, means a decision of the industrial 16
registrar under section 90D, including a decision about a 17
condition of appointment; or 18
(c) for division 4, means-- 19
(i) a decision of the chief executive; or 20
(ii) a decision of the industrial commission under 21
section 90Q or 90R.'. 22
Clause 8 Insertion of new pt 11, div 3 23
After section 151-- 24
insert-- 25
s8 20 s8
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`Division 3 Appeals to industrial commission 1
`151A Who may appeal 2
`(1) A person whose interests are affected by an original decision 3
may appeal against the decision to the industrial commission. 4
`(2) The person has a right to a statement of-- 5
(a) the decision; and 6
(b) the reasons for the decision. 7
`151B How to start appeal 8
`(1) An appeal is started by-- 9
(a) filing written notice of appeal with the industrial 10
registrar; and 11
(b) complying with the rules applying to appeals to the 12
industrial commission under the Industrial Relations 13
Act 1999. 14
`(2) The notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days after the day 15
the appellant receives notice of the original decision. 16
`(3) The industrial commission may at any time extend the period 17
for filing the notice of appeal. 18
`(4) The notice of appeal must state fully the grounds of the appeal 19
and the facts relied on. 20
`151C Stay of operation of decisions 21
`(1) The industrial commission may grant a stay of a decision 22
appealed against to secure the effectiveness of the appeal. 23
`(2) A stay-- 24
(a) may be given on the conditions the industrial 25
commission considers appropriate; and 26
(b) operates for the period fixed by the industrial 27
commission; and 28
s9 21 s9
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(c) may be revoked or amended by the industrial 1
commission. 2
`(3) The period of a stay must not extend past the time when the 3
industrial commission decides the appeal. 4
`(4) An appeal against a decision affects the decision, or carrying 5
out of the decision, only if the decision is stayed. 6
`151D Hearing procedures 7
`(1) The procedure for an appeal is to be under the rules applying 8
to appeals to the industrial commission under the Industrial 9
Relations Act 1999 or, if the rules make no provision or 10
insufficient provision, in accordance with directions of the 11
industrial commission. 12
`(2) An appeal is by way of rehearing, unaffected by the industrial 13
registrar's decision. 14
`151E Powers of commission on appeal 15
`(1) In deciding an appeal, the industrial commission may-- 16
(a) confirm the decision appealed against; or 17
(b) vary the decision appealed against; or 18
(c) set aside the decision appealed against and make a 19
decision in substitution for the decision set aside; or 20
(d) set aside the decision appealed against and return the 21
issue to the decision maker with directions the industrial 22
commission considers appropriate. 23
`(2) If on appeal the industrial commission acts under subsection 24
(1)(b) or (c), the decision is taken, for this Act (other than this 25
part), to be that of the industrial registrar.'. 26
Clause 9 Amendment of pt 11, div 4, hdg 27
Part 11, division 4, as renumbered, heading, after `Appeals'-- 28
insert-- 29
`to Industrial Court'. 30
s 10 22 s 11
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
Clause 10 Amendment of s 171 (False or misleading statements) 1
(1) Section 171(1)(a) and (b), from `a board' to `inspector'-- 2
omit, insert-- 3
`an official'. 4
(2) Section 171-- 5
insert-- 6
`(3) In this section-- 7
official means a board of inquiry, the chief executive, an 8
inspector or an authorised representative.'. 9
Clause 11 Amendment of s 172 (False, misleading or incomplete 10
documents) 11
(1) Section 172-- 12
insert-- 13
`(2A) A person must not give an authorised representative a 14
document containing information the person knows is false or 15
misleading in a material particular. 16
Maximum penalty--30 penalty units. 17
`(2B) Subsection (2A) does not apply to a person if the person, 18
when giving the document-- 19
(a) tells the authorised representative, to the best of the 20
person's ability, how it is false or misleading; and 21
(b) if the person has, or can reasonably obtain, the correct 22
information--gives the correct information.'. 23
(2) Section 172(3), `Also, a'-- 24
omit, insert-- 25
`A'. 26
(3) Section 172-- 27
insert-- 28
s 12 23 s 13
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`(5) Also, it is enough for a complaint against a person for an 1
offence against subsection (2A) to state that the document was 2
false or misleading to the person's knowledge.'. 3
Clause 12 Insertion of new s 173A 4
After section 173-- 5
insert-- 6
`173A Obstructing authorised representatives 7
`(1) A person must not obstruct an authorised representative in the 8
exercise of a power, unless the person has a reasonable excuse 9
for the obstruction. 10
Maximum penalty--40 penalty units. 11
`(2) If a person has obstructed an authorised representative and the 12
authorised representative decides to proceed with the exercise 13
of the power, the authorised representative must warn the 14
person. 15
`(3) In warning a person under subsection (2), an authorised 16
representative must warn the person that-- 17
(a) it is an offence to obstruct the authorised representative, 18
unless the person has a reasonable excuse; and 19
(b) the authorised representative considers the person's 20
conduct is an obstruction; and 21
(c) if the person continues to obstruct the authorised 22
representative, the authorised representative may ask an 23
inspector to help the authorised representative exercise 24
the power.'. 25
Clause 13 Amendment of s 174 (Discrimination or victimisation) 26
Section 174(1)(c), before `inspector'-- 27
insert-- 28
`authorised representative or an'. 29
s 14 24 s 16
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
Clause 14 Amendment of s 175 (Employers and principal contractor 1
not to encourage refusal to answer questions) 2
Section 175(1) and (2), before `inspector'-- 3
insert-- 4
`authorised representative or an'. 5
Clause 15 Amendment of s 176 (Impersonating inspectors and 6
others) 7
Section 176, from `be' to `representative.'-- 8
omit, insert-- 9
`be-- 10
(a) an accredited provider; or 11
(b) an authorised representative; or 12
(c) an inspector; or 13
(d) a workplace health and safety officer; or 14
(e) a workplace health and safety representative.'. 15
Clause 16 Amendment of sch 3 (Dictionary) 16
Schedule 3-- 17
insert-- 18
`authorised representative see section 90B. 19
eligible member, for part 7A, see section 90B. 20
employee organisation, for part 7A, see section 90B. 21
industrial registrar means the industrial registrar under the 22
Industrial Relations Act 1999.'. 23
s 17 25 s 20
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
Part 3 Amendment of Workers' 1
Compensation and 2
Rehabilitation Act 2003 3
Clause 17 Act amended in pt 3 4
This part amends the Workers' Compensation and 5
Rehabilitation Act 2003. 6
Clause 18 Amendment of s 107E (Authority's board may approve 7
amount payable under industrial instrument) 8
Section 107E(7), definition employee organisation-- 9
relocate to schedule 6. 10
Clause 19 Amendment of s 108 (Compensation entitlement) 11
Section 108-- 12
insert-- 13
`(3) A worker's entitlement to compensation is in addition to the 14
worker's entitlement to sick leave under the Industrial 15
Relations Act 1999, chapter 2, part 1, division 21 or another 16
Act.'. 17
Clause 20 Replacement of s 142 (Application of pt 8) 18
Section 142-- 19
omit, insert-- 20
`142 Application of pt 8 21
`This part applies only if a worker stops work because of an 22
injury and under the industrial instrument or contract of 23
employment applying to the worker-- 24
1 Industrial Relations Act 1999, chapter 2 (General employment conditions), part 1
(General), division 2 (Sick leave)
s 21 26 s 22
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(a) the worker is not entitled to be paid for the whole of the 1
day on which the worker stops work; or 2
(b) no amount is specified as being payable to the worker 3
for the whole of the day on which the worker stops 4
work; or 5
(c) the amount specified as being payable to the worker for 6
the whole of the day on which the worker stops work is 7
less than the amount payable as compensation under this 8
part.'. 9
Clause 21 Amendment of s 144 (When employer must pay worker 10
for day of injury) 11
Section 144-- 12
insert-- 13
`(1A) Subsection (1) applies despite anything in an industrial 14
instrument or contract of employment applying to the 15
worker.'. 16
Clause 22 Insertion of new ch 4, pt 6 17
After section 232-- 18
insert-- 19
`Part 6 Protection for injured workers 20
`232A Definitions for pt 6 21
`In this part-- 22
dismiss an injured worker includes a situation where-- 23
(a) an unreasonable employment condition that is designed 24
to make the worker leave employment is imposed on the 25
worker; and 26
(b) the worker leaves the employment. 27
former position of an injured worker means, at the worker's 28
option-- 29
s 22 27 s 22
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(a) the position from which the injured worker was 1
dismissed; or 2
(b) if the worker was transferred to a less advantageous 3
position before dismissal--the position held by the 4
worker when the worker became unfit for employment. 5
injured worker means a worker who sustains an injury. 6
injury means an injury for which compensation is payable. 7
`232B Dismissal of injured worker only after 12 months 8
`(1) Within 12 months after a worker sustains an injury, the 9
employer must not dismiss the worker solely or mainly 10
because the worker is not fit for employment in a position 11
because of the injury. 12
Maximum penalty--40 penalty units. 13
`(2) This section applies to a dismissal after the commencement of 14
this section even if the worker became unfit before the 15
commencement. 16
`232C Replacement for injured worker 17
`(1) This section applies if the employer wants to employ a 18
replacement worker while an injured worker is not fit for 19
employment in a position because of the injury. 20
`(2) The employer must, before a replacement worker starts 21
employment, give the replacement worker a written notice 22
informing the replacement worker of-- 23
(a) the temporary nature of the employment; and 24
(b) the injured worker's right to return to work. 25
`(3) In this section-- 26
replacement worker means-- 27
(a) a person who is specifically employed because an 28
injured worker is not fit for employment in a position 29
because of the injury; or 30
s 22 28 s 22
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
(b) a person replacing a worker who is temporarily 1
promoted or transferred to replace the injured worker. 2
`232D Reinstatement of injured worker 3
`(1) This section applies if an injured worker is dismissed because 4
the worker is not fit for employment in a position because of 5
the injury. 6
`(2) The worker may apply to the employer, within 12 months 7
after the injury, for reinstatement to the worker's former 8
position. 9
`(3) The worker must give the employer a doctor's certificate that 10
certifies the worker is fit for employment in the former 11
position. 12
`(4) This section applies to a dismissal after the commencement of 13
this section even if the worker became unfit before the 14
commencement. 15
`(5) In this section-- 16
doctor's certificate means a certificate signed by a registrant 17
as defined under the Medical Practitioners Registration Act 18
2001 or a law of the Commonwealth or another State that 19
substantially corresponds to that Act. 20
`232E Application to industrial commission 21
`(1) This section applies if the employer fails to immediately 22
reinstate the worker under section 232D. 23
`(2) The following persons may apply to the industrial 24
commission for an order that the employer reinstate the 25
worker to the worker's former position (a reinstatement 26
order)-- 27
(a) the worker; 28
(b) an employee organisation of which the worker is a 29
member, with the worker's consent. 30
`(3) The commission may make a reinstatement order if satisfied 31
the worker is fit for employment in the former position. 32
s 22 29 s 22
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`(4) The order may specify terms of reinstatement, including for 1
example, the day the reinstatement is to take effect. 2
`232F Powers of industrial commission 3
`(1) When exercising its jurisdiction under this part-- 4
(a) the industrial commission may exercise all relevant 5
powers, so far as the powers are appropriate to matters 6
arising under this part, as if the relevant powers were 7
expressly conferred by or under this Act; and 8
(b) the following provisions, so far as they apply to the 9
industrial commission and are appropriate to matters 10
arising under this part, apply to the industrial 11
commission as if the provisions were expressly included 12
in this Act or in subordinate legislation made under this 13
Act-- 14
(i) the Industrial Relations Act 1999, chapter 8 and 15
definitions of that Act relevant to the interpretation 16
of the chapter; 17
(ii) rules made under the Industrial Relations Act 18
1999, section 338; 19
(iii) a regulation made for the Industrial Relations Act 20
1999. 21
`(2) However, the only order the commission may make on an 22
application under section 232E is a reinstatement order under 23
the section. 24
`(3) In this section-- 25
relevant powers means powers conferred on the industrial 26
commission by-- 27
(a) the Industrial Relations Act 1999; or 28
(b) the rules made under the Industrial Relations Act 1999, 29
section 338; or 30
(c) a regulation made for the Industrial Relations Act 1999. 31
s 23 30 s 25
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
`232G Preservation of worker's rights 1
`(1) This part does not affect another right of a dismissed worker 2
under an Act or law. 3
`(2) This part can not be affected by a contract or agreement.'. 4
Clause 23 Replacement of ch 13, pt 3, div 1 hdg 5
Chapter 13, part 3, division 1, heading-- 6
omit, insert-- 7
`Division 1 Appeal to industrial magistrate or 8
industrial commission'. 9
Clause 24 Amendment of s 548A (Meaning of appeal body) 10
Section 548A(1), `part'-- 11
omit, insert-- 12
`division'. 13
Clause 25 Insertion of new ch 13, pt 3, div 1A hdg and new s 560A 14
After section 560-- 15
insert-- 16
`Division 1A Appeal to Industrial Court 17
`560A Application of div 1A 18
`This division applies to the following decisions-- 19
(a) a decision of the industrial commission under chapter 4, 20
part 6;2 21
(b) a decision of an industrial magistrate or the industrial 22
commission under division 1.'. 23
2 Chapter 4 (Injury management), part 6 (Protection for injured workers)
s 26 31 s 28
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
Clause 26 Amendment of s 561 (Appeal from appeal body to 1
Industrial Court) 2
(1) Section 561, heading `from appeal body'-- 3
omit. 4
(2) Section 561(1), `appeal body's'-- 5
omit, insert-- 6
`industrial magistrate's or the industrial commission's'. 7
(3) Section 561(3), `appeal body'-- 8
omit, insert-- 9
`industrial magistrate or the industrial commission'. 10
Clause 27 Amendment of s 562 (Powers of Industrial Court) 11
Section 562(2)-- 12
omit, insert-- 13
`(2) If, on an appeal in relation to a decision mentioned in section 14
560A(a), the court acts under subsection (1)(b) or (c), the 15
decision of the court is taken for this Act, other than this 16
division, to be the decision of the industrial commission. 17
`(3) If, on an appeal in relation to a decision mentioned in section 18
560A(b), the court acts under subsection (1)(b) or (c), the 19
decision of the court is taken for this Act, other than this 20
division, to be the decision of the insurer.'. 21
Clause 28 Insertion of new ch 13, pt 3, div 1B hdg 22
After section 564-- 23
insert-- 24
`Division 1B Provisions about particular 25
appealed decisions under divs 1 26
and 1A'. 27
s 29 32 s 31
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
Clause 29 Amendment of s 566 (Decision about payment of 1
compensation) 2
Section 566(1), `appeal body'-- 3
omit, insert-- 4
`industrial magistrate, the industrial commission'. 5
Clause 30 Amendment of sch 6 (Dictionary) 6
(1) Schedule 6, definition injury-- 7
omit. 8
(2) Schedule 6-- 9
insert-- 10
dismiss, for chapter 4, part 6, see section 232A. 11
former position, for chapter 4, part 6, see section 232A. 12
injured worker, for chapter 4, part 6, see section 232A. 13
injury-- 14
(a) generally--see section 32; or 15
(b) for chapter 4, part 6--see section 232A. 16
(3) Schedule 6, definition appeal body, after `part 3'-- 17
insert-- 18
`, division 1'. 19
Part 4 Amendment of Industrial 20
Relations Act 1999 21
Clause 31 Act amended in pt 4 22
This part amends the Industrial Relations Act 1999. 23
s 32 33 s 33
Workplace Health and Safety and Other Acts
Amendment Bill 2006
Clause 32 Omission of ch 3, pt 5 1
Chapter 3, part 5-- 2
omit. 3
Clause 33 Amendment of sch 5 (Dictionary) 4
Schedule 5, definitions dismiss, injured employee and 5
injury-- 6
omit. 7
© State of Queensland 2006
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