PPE Compliance: Who's Responsible?

The legal risks associated with workplace health and safety are notoriously hefty, making it very important to stay compliant and keep your colleagues safe. 

If you work in any industry that requires the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as construction, manufacturing, traffic control, logistics, or other blue-collar industries, you should be well aware of the risks. 

But whose responsibility is it to inform you of these risks, and who should be helping to protect you from harm? 

As a reliable safety equipment supplier, Timberfix (TFX) is well across workplace health and safety protocols in Australia, and we’re passionate about spreading our knowledge. 

Therefore, we offer this article as a resource to answer any questions about PPE enforcement on Australian work sites. 

Supplying PPE

According to Safe Work Australia:

“A person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) must put control measures in place to protect workers’ health and safety.”

All kinds of people can be labelled the site’s PCBU, including a company, an unincorporated body or association, a sole trader, or a self-employed person. This will depend on the kind of business being performed, the type of job site, and the hierarchy of the operator on a given site. 

Whoever it may be, the PCBU is responsible for selecting suitable PPE, guiding workers on how to use it, regularly assessing PPE compliance, and installing ample signage on the use of PPE on site. 

Interestingly, Safe Work Australia highlights that PPE must only be issued if there is no reasonable way in which to mitigate the risk of injury. If a person is jackhammering, for instance, there is no reasonable way in which to avoid rock from flying up or knowing that a guard will break at random. Therefore, PPE would be required in this instance. 

This law indicates that PPE must not be used as a first port-of-call to reduce the risk of injury, when other measures can be taken to improve the safety of a site or a given task. 

Listening to Instruction

While the PCBU must put every measure in place to keep staff safe under their watch, it is also up to each individual to comply with instruction, engage with their induction and follow signage as it appears on site. 

Assuming the PCBU has followed every precaution and has reasonably protected the staff on site, then it is the responsibility of the person to look after themselves. 

Of course, if an individual notices another not complying with regulation – forgetting to wear safety goggles, for example – then a team effort is required to keep everyone safe.

Enforcing Penalties

In the instance where an individual disregards safety precautions despite proper training and signage, the PCBU will be within their rights to dismiss the person for non-compliance. Unsafe work practices should not be tolerated on a job site, as it endangers the individual, their colleagues, and the wider business. 

These individuals can be given multiple warnings before being sent home for the day. 

If a PCBU has not complied with PPE regulation and has endangered their staff, then the state regulator will step in.

Each state of Australia has their own regulator and Safe Work Australia is not responsible for enforcing the regulations it outlines. 

A state-based WorkSafe entity regulates every Australian state except for Queensland, where Workplace Health and Safety Queensland operates. 

The penalty for PPE non-compliance can include on the spot fines in the thousands of dollars for the offending business. 

Contact TFX

If you’re unsure of the rules and regulations in your state, or on a given kind of job site, get in touch with TFX or your local authorities. 

We’re passionate about keeping Australian job sites safe so check back soon for more helpful articles on PPE and compliance.