This guide helps small PCBUs understand how to manage critical risks under the Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA).
This guidance applies from 1 April 2027
Key points
- Small PCBUs’ main HSWA duties are limited to managing critical risks, though they can choose to manage other risks.
- A critical risk is a risk that is likely to result in:
- death
- a notifiable injury
- a notifiable illness
- a notifiable incident
- a specified occupational disease¹
or, - is managed by regulations under HSWA.²
See What is critical risk? for more information on identifying critical risks.
See Am I a small or large PCBU? for more information on how to work out if you are a small PCBU.
Managing critical risks
You must manage your critical risks so far as is reasonably practicable.
For more information on managing risk see How to manage work risks
Duties that are limited to critical risks for small PCBUs
For small PCBUs your main duties are limited to managing critical risks. This means you are not required to manage other risks. The duties that are limited to critical risks are listed below.
| Duties | Details |
|---|---|
| The primary duty of care | Small PCBUs must ensure the health and safety of workers and other people who may be affected by critical risks arising from their work. |
| Duty of a PCBU who manages or controls a workplace | This duty for small PCBUs only applies to critical risks. |
| Duty of a PCBU who manages or controls fixtures, fittings, or plant at a workplace | This duty for small PCBUs only applies to critical risks. |
| Duties related to training, supervision, and information |
When a small PCBU’s work is affected by a hazard associated with a critical risk, so far as is reasonably practicable, it must make sure workers have adequate knowledge and experience or are adequately supervised and adequately trained. For more information about training, supervision, information, see Providing information, training, instruction or supervision for workers |
| Duties related to personal protective equipment (PPE) |
When managing a critical risk includes providing PPE to workers or other persons, a small PCBU must:
|
| Officer duties | Officers of small PCBUs must exercise due diligence to make sure the small PCBU is complying with its duty to identify and manage critical risks. |
|
Upstream duties:
|
These duties for small PCBUs only apply to critical risks. For more information about these upstream duties, see WorkSafe’s guidance on Upstream duties |
There are some other things that you have to do
Worker welfare duties apply in all workplaces because these duties are about basic working conditions, not risk levels.
So far as is reasonably practicable, you must still ensure that adequate facilities are provided for workers at your workplace including:
- toilets
- drinking water
- hand washing facilities
- first aid
- emergency planning
For more information see General risk and workplace management – part 1
What does all this mean in practice?
The main HSWA duties apply to small PCBUs only for critical risks. Small PCBUs do not have to manage other risks under these duties.
This means:
- the first thing you have to do is identify your critical risks
- you must use what you know, and what you ought reasonably to know, about your work and the hazards involved, to assess your critical risks
- you should take a practical, common-sense approach to identifying and assessing your critical risks
- critical risks must be managed, not just identified
- critical risks must be managed ‘so far as is reasonably practicable’
- monitor, review and revise controls related to critical risks.
See What is critical risk? for steps detailing how to identify critical risks.
Example: small farm or orchard
A small farm must manage hazards relating to critical risks such as:
- machinery and vehicles (rollovers, crushing)
- working at height (falls)
- hazardous substances (poisoning, burns, long-term illness)
- electricity (electrocution)
- heat and sun exposure (heat stroke, dehydration)
- noise (hearing loss).
The small farm must provide for worker welfare (toilets, water, hand washing facilities).
The farm is not required to manage other risks such as:
- sprains or strains from lifting boxes, or slips and trips in the home office of the farm.
They might choose to manage these risks voluntarily to keep workers safe and avoid lost productivity.
Example: small retail shop or dairy
A small shop must provide for worker welfare (such as toilets, water, hand washing facilities).
They are not required to manage other risks such as:
- minor manual handling injuries
- slips and trips that will likely only cause minor injuries
- minor cuts.
Whether violence and aggression in retail are a critical risk will depend on the particular circumstances. For example, a late-night dairy or liquor store may decide robbery is a critical risk and must manage it, such as through security measures.
Working with other PCBUs
If you have the same health and safety duties as another PCBU you are working with, you must consult, cooperate, and coordinate with them, so far as is reasonably practicable.
For more information about working with other PCBUs to manage the same health and safety duties, and how this works for small PCBUs (including how risks can be managed differently through contracting arrangements with large PCBUs), see Working with other PCBUs to manage work risks (guidance to be released soon).
Footnotes
¹ As listed under Schedule 2 Accident Compensation Act 2001(external link)
²As listed under Schedule 1A HSWA(external link)
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