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Are you Reporting Incidents?

By on April 16, 2014

WORKSAFE VICTORIA provides information about the importance of reporting incidents on your work sites

EMPLOYERS, occupiers and persons in charge must report incidents to WorkSafe Victoria at 13 23 60.

Deaths and life-threatening injuries(e.g. amputations) must be reported immediately.

Other serious incidents, such as those listed below, should be reported as soon as the employer is aware of the incident:

  • a person requires medical treatment:
    • after exposure to a substance
    • as an inpatient in hospital for a serious injury such as an amputation, a head or eye injury electric shock, spinal injuries or serious laceration

Incidents where employees or other persons are in the immediate vicinity of a risk such as:

  • registered or licensed plant that has collapsed, overturned, failed or malfunctioned
  • the collapse of an excavation supporting an excavation
  • the collapse of a building or structure
  • an implosion, explosion or fire
  • incidents involving Dangerous Goods
  • if plant or object falls from high places

In relation to a mine:

  • the overturning or collapse of any plant
  • any inrush of water, mud or gas, or
  • the interruption of the main system of ventilation.

WorkSafe will call the employer or occupier the same day and advise the employer or occupier:

  • If an inspector will visit their site
  • Whether the employer or occupier can disturb the incident scene.

Serious incidents will be assessed by a WorkSafe Inspector.

The provided information reflects what is required under Part 5 (Duties relating to Incidents), Section 37 (Incidents to which this Part applies) of the OHS Act 2004.

Section 38 of the act (Duty to Notify of Incidents) includes the following “An employer or self-employed person must notify the Authority immediately after becoming aware that an incident has occurred at a workplace under the management and control of the employer or self-employed person.”

Section 39 of the act relates to the duty to preserve (non disturbance of) incident sites until released by an inspector.

If in doubt about whether an incident is reportable or not we encourage management to report the incident. Review of lesser incidents/near misses relative to causal factors helps in a proactive sense.

For further information,
Contact the WorkSafe Incident Notification Unit on 13 23 60

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