NO.054

RESPONSE TO PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION REPORT ON WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

AND OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY

The Treasurer and Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations today announced

the release of the Productivity Commission’s final report from its inquiry

into National Workers’ Compensation and Occupational Health and Safety

(OHS) Frameworks and the Government response.

The Australian Government welcomes the Commission’s findings and supports

the broad direction of recommendations to work towards nationally consistent

workers’ compensation and OHS arrangements. The Australian Government

proposes to establish a new tripartite body, the Australian Safety and Compensation

Council (ASCC), to develop policy advice on workers’ compensation and

OHS programs for the Workplace Relations Ministers’ Council. The ASCC

will build on the achievements of the National Occupational Health and Safety

Commission (NOHSC), whose current work will continue under the new framework.

Given this commitment, the Government does not support the key elements of

the Commission’s proposed national framework model. In particular, replacing

NOHSC with a smaller expert body; requiring all jurisdictions to adopt uniform

OHS regulations; sharing NOHSC’s funding between the Australian Government

and States and Territories; developing an alternative national workers’

compensation scheme to operate in parallel with State schemes and establishing,

by legislation, a workers’ compensation body to develop nationally consistent

standards.

Minister Andrews said that the Government remains committed to the National

OHS Strategy and aims to achieve national consistency in both workers’

compensation and OHS.

The Government has deferred responding to recommendations relating to design

elements for workers’ compensation schemes and OHS and will seek advice

from the ASCC.

The Government’s response is at www.treasurer.gov.au

and www.dewr.gov.au. Copies of the report

are at Government Info Shops or at the Productivity Commission website at www.pc.gov.au.

CANBERRA

24 June 2004

Contact:

AUSTRALIAN SAFETY AND COMPENSATION COUNCIL

Function

To provide:

• leadership and coordination for national efforts to prevent workplace death,

  injury and disease and to improve workers’ compensation arrangements,

  and rehabilitation and return to work of injured employees;

• a national forum by which representatives of State and Territory governments,

  employers and employees consult and participate in the development of policies

  relating to OHS and workers’ compensation matters; and

• policy advice to the Australian Workplace Relations Ministers’ Council

  (WRMC) on national workers’ compensation and occupational health and

  safety arrangements to deliver nationally consistent regulatory frameworks.

Activities

The Australian Safety and Compensation Council activities will include:

• advising the WRMC on policy initiatives to improve workplace safety, workers’

  compensation arrangements and rehabilitation and return to work of injured

  employees;

• identifying priority areas for nationally consistent OHS and workers’

  compensation arrangements and recommend policy options to WRMC;

• oversighting implementation and further development of the National OHS

  Strategy 2002-2012 including:

  • promotion and dissemination of the National OHS Strategy;
  • coordination of national efforts to achieve the Strategy’s aims

    and targets;

  • review and refinement of the Strategy; and
  • report on Strategy progress to the WRMC;
• promoting national consistency in the OHS and workers’ compensation

  regulatory framework including advising on the development and maintenance

  of national standards and guidance material, and design principles for workers’

  compensation schemes, approved by WRMC;

• oversighting Australia’s OHS and workers’ compensation research

  to provide information and advice for determining priorities and best practice

  approaches to injury and illness prevention and management;

• oversighting the collection of OHS and workers’ compensation data

  to support effective implementation of the National OHS Strategy and to compare

  key performance results of Australian workers’ compensation schemes

  and OHS performance;

• monitoring key developments across the various programmes and report to

  WRMC on implementation of its national consistency programme; and

• promoting best practice in workplace health and safety, and rehabilitation

  and return to work of injured employees.

Membership

The core membership of the Council will be:

• independent Chair (1);
• Australian Government member (1);
• representative from each State and Territory (8);
• employer representatives (3); and
• employee representatives (3).

Members will be appointed by the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations

after consulting with governments and relevant organisations.

The Chair, with the agreement of the Council, will have the option of coopting

additional/replacement members to assist the work of the Council.

The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations will provide secretariat

services to the Council and be responsible for meeting the cost of member’s

participation in the Council.