SafeWork issues 11 venues with improvement notices

SafeWork NSW has issued 16 improvement notices to 11 venues across New South Wales. The notices are in relation to sexual harassment work health and safety (WHS) concerns.

The regulator’s Respect at Work Taskforce evaluated 38 businesses over a two-month period on whether they were proactively managing WHS to prevent sexual harassment in their workplace.

The program found that venues need to establish better means of staff consultation to identify and implement WHS measures to protect workers, implement training for workers on risks relative to bar work, and consider a range of control measures to manage risks.

The program found that the majority of venues (92 per cent) had systems in place for identifying the risks of workplace sexual harassment.

SafeWork NSW Director Capability and Engagement Christina Hey-Nguyen noted that hospitality workers face higher than average risks of experiencing sexual harassment, whether due to the service of alcohol, late night work, or the expectation that customer needs are prioritised over worker safety and respect.

“This inspection program across 38 NSW hospitality venues demonstrates that progress is being made, however more needs to be done including across the areas of leadership, training, reporting and work design, to ensure the health and safety of the hospitality workers,” said Hey-Nguyen.

“As the workplace safety regulator, SafeWork NSW has increased its focus on this pervasive harm and urges the hospitality industry to take proactive steps to protect its workers from sexual harassment.”

Staff and employers can visit the SafeWork website for advice and resources, including the NSW Code of Practice for sexual and gender-based harassment and a specially tailored “how to” guide for hospitality businesses.

Photo by Deane Bayas.