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Workplace Health & Safety Representative - WHSR

Departmental Procedures and Guidelines
Resources
What is a Health and Safety Representative (HSR)?
Information for Principals/Managers and HSRs
Does my school/workplace need a HSR?
How do we elect a HSR?
Who is a suitable person to be elected as HSR?
Does my HSR need training?

Departmental procedures and guidelines

HLS-PR-024: Workplace Health and Safety Representatives

Resources

HSR Factsheet and Checklist 107k

WHSR notification poster 66k

What is a Health and Safety Representative (HSR)?

The role of the HSR is primarily to liaise with other staff to identify health and safety issues and convey these to management. The HSR role is important in the consultative processes at your school or workplace.

Information for Principals/Managers and HSRs

Health and Safety Representatives are electedby fellow staff at an individual worksite. The HSR fulfils a different role to the WHSO which is an appointed position. However, these two positions can work well together to gather information and expertise and improve health and safety at your school or workplace.

Does my school/workplace need a HSR?

Education Queensland schools and departmental workplaces are encouraged to elect a HSR. More than one HSR can be elected per site, negotiate with you Principal/Manager about the number of HSRs at your site. Your school/workplace staff can chose to, or not to, elect a HSR. However, if requested by the staff group the principal/manager must facilitate the election process.

The benefits of having a HSR(s) include:

having another resource on site to assist with health and safety issues
promoting conversations and communication about health and safety
being valuable member of the health and safety committee
being of particular benefit at workplaces with fewer than 30 employees as a point of contact both for staff and the manager.

How do we elect a HSR?

Your staff group can chose the election process that best suits your school/workplace. The process will include the nomination and publication of candidates and a voting system, for example:

confidential or public voting, for example:
- show of hands
- ballot
- email vote.

A flow chart and more information is available in the HSR Election Fact Sheet 90k.

The HSR election templates 249k provide guides and blank forms for you to modify to suit your staff group and election process.

Who is a suitable person to be elected as HSR?

The role of the HSR is to represent their fellow workers on health and safety issues and communicate this information to their employer.

The purpose of the HSR is to act as a 'representative' of the staff group and convey heath and safety ideas, opinions and concerns to the principal/manager. Principal, executive principal/manager and head of school/workplace roles (e.g. team leaders) are encompassed in the 'principal' role. With this in mind it is important that all staff consider the following factors when nominating their potential representative/s:

that the HSR 'representative' role is compatible with the person's current role in the school/workplace. For example, some roles that are part of the 'management team' may conflict with the intent of the HSR role. It is important that the HSR feels, and is able to, accurately represent 'staff' opinions to 'management'.
- It will be at each staff group's discretion to determine if people in roles such as supervisor/manager, deputy principal, associate principal, Business Services Manager and other administrator roles are nominated and elected as HSRs.
- People in these 'management' roles also need to ensure that there would be no conflict of interest between their administrative role and their HSR role prior to accepting nomination.
that the person will adequately and fairly represent the opinions of the whole staff group (or the group they have been elected to represent)
that the person feels comfortable discussing and presenting health and safety issues to the principal/manager.
that the person will assist with health and safety strategies and promotion in the school/workplace and actively participate in the health and safety committee.

Following negotiation with the Principal or Manager, the staff group may choose to elect more than one HSR. A number of HSRs may assist to represent different staff groups e.g. teaching and non-teaching or diverse or separate work areas on large campuses/workplaces. The HSR position provides further structure and opportunity for staff consultation.

Does my HSR need training?

An approved course "Course in Functioning as a Health and Safety Representative - 30630QLD" will be available soon for Workplace Health and Safety Representatives to attend.

Further information on these courses and the calendar for 2012 courses, will be provided as soon as possible, refer to courses and training. You can also contact your local health and safety consultant for further updates. The duration of the course is 5 days.

Appropriate training can provide the HSR with tools and knowledge that allow the person to effectively participate and improve health and safety in the school or workplace. With these skills the HSR can be a valuable member of the health and safety team.

There is no obligation for an elected HSR to attend training, however, on request the HSR is entitled to this formal training.

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