R01
Shared duty of care
You and the host both hold a duty to the same worker, and it cannot be handed over by contract. I set out who does what, so the overlap is covered and both sides know what they hold.
All sectors
Sector 04 · Labour Hire
Duty of care when you don't control the site.
Labour hire splits the work from the workplace. You employ the worker, someone else runs the floor they stand on, and the duty to that worker sits with both of you. The gap usually opens between two organisations that each expected the other to have it covered. I close it in writing.
R02
Host site assessment
A placement decision is a safety decision. I put a site assessment in front of it, so you know the hazards, the controls and the supervision arrangements before a worker starts.
R03
Induction and verification of competency
Workers arrive with tickets and experience that need checking against the task in front of them. I build the verification step and the site-specific induction, so the match is confirmed before the first shift.
R04
Supervision on sites you don't control
Your worker stands on someone else's floor, under someone else's supervisor. I set the check-in points, the escalation path and the standard you hold the host to.
R05
Incident reporting across two organisations
An incident on a host site has to reach both organisations, and a notifiable incident has to reach the regulator. I make the reporting path explicit so nothing stops with one party.
R06
Workers compensation exposure
The claim sits with you while the hazard sits on a site you do not run. I get the risk profile, the return to work arrangements and the host obligations documented, so the exposure is managed where it starts.
Common questions
Questions I get asked
- Who is responsible for safety, the labour hire company or the host?
- Both. You and the host each hold a duty to the same worker and it cannot be handed over by contract. Where more than one party holds a duty, each has to do what is reasonably practicable, and they have to consult and co-operate with each other.
- Do I need to assess a host site before placing a worker?
- Yes, and it is the step most often skipped. You cannot discharge a duty to a worker on a site you have never looked at. The assessment covers the hazards, the controls, the supervision arrangements and who the worker reports to.
- What is verification of competency?
- It is the check that the ticket or the experience matches the task in front of the worker on that site. A licence records an assessment made at some point in the past, so the on-site check is what confirms they can do this job, on this plant, here.
- Who reports an incident that happens on a host site?
- Both organisations need it, and a notifiable incident has to reach the regulator. Agree the path in writing before a placement starts, including who makes the call to the regulator, so nothing stops with one party.
- Does labour hire safety law differ between states?
- The duties are similar and the wording differs. New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia run the model WHS laws. Victoria runs the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004. Several states also operate labour hire licensing schemes with their own conditions, so check what applies where the worker is placed.
Before a placement starts
What goes in the agreement
I put the host assessment, the induction, the supervision arrangements and the reporting path into one agreed document. Both organisations sign up to a specific set of obligations rather than a general assurance, and the worker on the floor is covered by both.