Psychosocial hazards in the workplace: Victorian employers’ obligations

What has changed?

From 1 December 2025, Victoria’s new Occupational Health and Safety (Psychological Health) Regulations 2025 came into effect. They bring Victoria in line with the rest of Australia and focus on psychosocial risks and psychological health in the workplace.

The Regulations require all Victorian employers, large and small, to identify, eliminate (or reduce) any risk associated with psychosocial hazards, as far as reasonably practicable. Employers engaging labour hire workers and independent contractors (and an independent contractor’s employees) are also covered by the Regulations.

Employers need to act quickly to ensure they are compliant as its unlikely WorkSafe Victoria will allow a ‘lead up time’ or be lenient on employers when inspecting a workplace or enforcing the Regulations.

Identifying psychosocial hazards

1. What are psychosocial hazards?

Psychosocial hazards are defined as any factor(s) in ¹:

1. the work design (the equipment, content and organisation of an employee’s work):
2. the systems of work (the way work is planned, organised and done);
3. the management of work (responsibility for and control of operational decisions);
4. the carrying out of the work (how, when and where a task is done); or
5. personal or work-related interactions (interactions and behaviours that happen between employees, and between employees and others):

that may arise in the working environment and cause an employee to experience one or more negative psychological responses that create a risk to the employee’s health or safety.

2. Examples of psychosocial hazards

WorkSafe Victoria have produced a Compliance Code which provides examples of psychosocial hazards in the workplace. They include aggression or violence, bullying, exposure to traumatic events and/or content, gendered violence, high job demands, low job control, low recognition and reward, sexual harassment, poor environmental conditions, poor organisational change and justice, poor support, poor workplace relationships, and isolated work. ²

3. The Risk Management Process

For physical risks, employers must use a Risk Management Process to assist employers in complying with their duties under the Regulations including:

• identifying the psychosocial hazards and risks;
• assessing, where necessary, any associated risks to health or safety;
• controlling the identified risk as far as reasonably practicable; and
• monitor, review and, where necessary, revise controls.

Controlling the risks of psychosocial hazards

Where reasonably possible, employers must eliminate the risks associated with a psychosocial hazard. If it isn’t possible to eliminate a risk, employers must control (reduce) the risk through ‘control measures’. WorkSafe Victoria’s Compliance Code provides examples of possible control measures and importantly, “Information, Instructions or Training” cannot be the primary, or only, control measure to address a psychosocial hazard.

What should employers do to prepare?

1. Review WorkSafe’s Compliance Code

Employers need to become familiar with WorkSafe Victoria’s Compliance Code. It outlines the agreed framework and considerations around psychosocial hazards and gives good information and pointers on where to start.

2. Identify and consider relevant hazards

Employers need to gather information on their organisation and use it to identify hazards that require action. Unlike physical risk assessments, where you can do a walk through with your employees or health and safety reps (HSRs), psychosocial hazards are harder to identify.

Depending on the size of the organisation, employers can undertake an employee survey, designed to collate psychosocial hazard relevant data. If that’s not practical, employers can look at different sources to create a base line view, including:

• Consulting with HSRs and employees;
• Analysing historical organisational data, including previous workers compensation claims, complaints of inappropriate workplace conduct, demographics and job responsibilities.

Employers then need to consider the likelihood and consequence of the risk occurring, using tools like a risk assessment matrix to help, as well as ask:

• What psychosocial hazards can you identify?
• How often are the employees at risk?
• Are some employees at a higher risk than others? Why?
• What steps could you take to eliminate or mitigate the risks?

3. Consultation

Employers are required to consult with employees at all stages of the risk assessment process and psychosocial hazards are no different. ³ Consulting with employees can also reduce psychosocial hazards in the workplace: employees have more control and input in their working environment and are more likely to identify and report hazards.

If an employer has employee Health and Safety Representative(s), they should be involved in the consultation process. ⁴ Employees are also required to take reasonable care of their own health and safety, and those around them in the workplace, and to co-operate with implementing action plans towards health and safety. ⁵

4. Record everything!

Employers should be able to show WorkSafe documentary evidence of the steps they have taken to identify, assess, eliminate (or control) and review psychosocial risks in the workplace. WorkSafe Victoria has published a template Prevention Plan to assist employers, but employers can develop their own assessment/prevention plan and a risk register specific to their workplace.

5. Regular and ongoing review

Compliance with the Regulations requires regular review of implemented processes and procedures in line with workplace changes and monitoring of risk controls. The Regulations also specify instances when an employer must review and (if necessary) revise their control measure(s), such as when new or additional information about the psychosocial hazard becomes available.

The Regulations also provide an Issue Resolution Procedure for employers and employees to follow when reporting and resolving health and safety issues.

Get in touch

If you want to ensure your workplace is compliant with the new Regulations, we can help. Our team has extensive experience advising employers in the OHS space including:

• identifying, addressing and managing relevant physical and psychosocial hazards
• delivering Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) training to staff, focusing on workplace bullying, harassment, discrimination and appropriate workplace behaviours as well as front line manager training
• conducting external investigations into allegations of misconduct or bullying in the workplace
• advising and representing clients in WorkSafe Victoria investigations and prosecutions.

If you have any questions or want practical guidance on the changes, please contact us to discuss how we can assist you and your business.