Resources
Practical guidance you can use this week.
Governance questions, hazard assessment, consultation, work design, incident response and review, with printable checklists and jurisdiction orientation. Training supports good risk management; it cannot replace redesigning work.
Systemic hazards or interpersonal climate?
Psychosocial hazards: features of work design, demands, control, support and exposure. Managed through risk management and redesign.
Psychological safety: a team climate for asking, admitting mistakes, disagreeing and raising concerns. Supports early reporting; does not remove hazards.
18 resources shown
Governance
Two lenses: psychosocial hazards and psychological safety
Know which problem you are solving before choosing training.
Psychosocial hazards are features of work that can cause harm: excessive demands, low control, poor support, role conflict, poor change management, traumatic exposure, isolation, harassment. They are managed as a system through risk management and work design. Psychological safety is a team climate in which people feel able to ask questions, admit mistakes, disagree and raise concerns without being embarrassed or punished. It supports early reporting and learning, but it does not remove a hazard. A team can feel safe to speak and still be understaffed.
Checklist
- Name the hazard or climate issue in plain words before selecting a course
- Ask: is the cause in work design, or in how people talk to each other, or both?
- Pair every interpersonal skills program with a control or system action
- Describe team learning, candour, speaking up and constructive challenge in your own terms
Governance
Questions for directors and officers
A question set to test whether oversight is evidence-based.
Officer duties differ by jurisdiction, so start by confirming which law applies to each operation. Then ask for evidence rather than assurances: how hazards are found, who was consulted, which controls changed work, and how effectiveness was tested. Training completion alone shows activity, not that risk is controlled.
Checklist
- Which laws and regulator guidance apply at each work location?
- What are the top three psychosocial hazards and who owns each?
- What did workers tell us, and what did we change as a result?
- How do we know controls work? Which indicators moved?
- What would we do differently if a regulator asked today?
Hazard assessment
Psychosocial hazard identification walkthrough
Look at demands, control, support, role, change, exposure and behaviour by task.
Work through a role or team task by task. Combine data you already hold (absence, overtime, turnover, incident and grievance trends), what workers say, and direct observation of how work is organised. Consider how long and how often people are exposed, how severe it is, and how hazards combine.
Checklist
- Demands: volume, pace, emotional load, deadlines, hours
- Control: say over how, when and in what order work is done
- Support and role clarity: help, information, conflicting instructions
- Change, isolation, remote work, trauma and third-party aggression
- Record sources, who was involved and the date of the next review
Hazard assessment
Risk assessment record template
A defensible way to record what you found and why you chose each control.
A good record is short and specific: the hazard, who is exposed, the evidence, the control chosen and why, the owner, the date and how effectiveness will be checked. Avoid generic wording such as "increase resilience" as a control.
Checklist
- Hazard and affected group
- Evidence used (data, consultation, observation)
- Control chosen, why, owner, due date
- How and when effectiveness will be tested
Consultation
Worker consultation plan
Reach affected workers and representatives, then close the loop.
Consultation should reach those directly affected, including shift, remote, casual and contracted workers where relevant, and use existing health and safety representatives or committees where they exist. Make participation safe: offer anonymous routes alongside conversations, and report back what changed.
Checklist
- List who is affected and who might be missed
- Offer at least one anonymous and one face-to-face route
- Give time and information before asking for views
- Publish "you said, we did" within an agreed time
Work design and controls
Work design first: control options
Examples of controls that change work rather than ask people to cope.
Controls higher in the hierarchy remove or reduce the cause: resourcing, task allocation, rosters, deadlines, role clarity, job control, change sequencing, site design and security. Training, awareness and support services are useful administrative or supporting controls but are weaker when used alone.
Checklist
- Can the demand be removed or reduced at source?
- Can rosters, staffing or deadlines change?
- Can roles and decision rights be made clearer?
- Which training or support is added alongside, and for which residual risk?
Work design and controls
Restructure and change impact checklist
Apply before announcements, not after.
Change is a frequent source of hazard: uncertainty, role loss, higher workloads, loss of control. Review likely impacts before decisions are final, consult, set controls and schedule a check three months after implementation.
Checklist
- Who is affected and how (workload, role, location, security)
- Consultation held before the decision is final
- Communication plan with named sources and timing
- Post-change review date and indicators
Incident response
Responding to bullying, aggression and distressing events
Immediate steps, case handling and learning back into the system.
Ensure immediate safety and offer support, then follow the applicable case procedure with consistent timeframes, confidentiality, fairness to all parties and protection from reprisal. Look beyond the individual case to the hazard behind it. Where regulator notification may be required, check local law and escalate early.
Checklist
- Immediate safety and support offered and recorded
- Case owner, timeframe and conflict-of-interest check
- Reprisal protection explained to all parties
- Regulator notification question checked with advice
- Root-cause review feeds the risk register
Evidence and audits
Evidence register and audit readiness
What to retain so you can show your system works.
Retain records that show a cycle: identify, assess, control, consult, train, monitor, review. Training records show who was informed; effectiveness evidence shows whether exposure fell. Protect personal and health information and keep board reporting de-identified. This site issues no completion certificates for these resources.
Checklist
- Training register by role, module version and date
- Hazard register and control plan with owners
- Consultation records and outcomes
- Effectiveness checks and review minutes
- Data protection rules for case and survey data
Strategic annual review
Strategic annual review agenda
A recommended yearly rhythm, with trigger-based reviews in between.
An annual governance review is a recommended practice, not a universal legal audit requirement. Review earlier when controls are ineffective, work or hazards change, consultation raises concerns, incidents occur, or a representative or regulator identifies a need. Specific annual duties exist in some places (for example France’s DUERP update); follow the applicable guide.
Checklist
- Hazard register refreshed against current work
- Control effectiveness and indicators reviewed
- Training coverage and quality reviewed against role needs
- Law, code and guidance changes noted per jurisdiction
- Decisions and next-year priorities minuted
Training
Training needs analysis by role
Match modules to roles, hazards and gaps, then test whether learning changed practice.
Start from the hazards and the decisions each role makes, not from a course list. Use the Training Matrix for role-based modules and the Training Assessment Helper for a transparent, answer-based priority list. Check outcomes at 3 and 6 months: did managers act earlier, did reports get handled consistently, did controls change?
Checklist
- List decisions each role makes that affect work design or reporting
- Choose delivery format to fit shift patterns and literacy needs
- Define a practice change you expect to see
- Set refresh triggers, labelled as recommendations
Jurisdiction orientation
Each jurisdiction separates statutory duty, regulator guidance, voluntary standards and recommended implementation. These are orientation summaries; confirm the law at each work location.
Australia
Detailed country guideStatutory dutyWHS laws (as adopted by each Commonwealth, state or territory; Victoria has its own OHS framework) require duty holders to manage psychosocial risks so far as is reasonably practicable. Officers have due diligence duties. Separately, the Respect@Work positive duty under sex discrimination law requires reasonable and proportionate steps against sex-based harassment; it is a different duty with a different regulator.
Regulator guidanceSafe Work Australia and state or territory regulators publish psychosocial codes and guidance. Code approval and legal effect differ by jurisdiction; confirm locally. Training is an administrative control and cannot replace work redesign.
Voluntary standardISO 45003 may be used as voluntary guidance.
Recommended implementationOfficer briefing, manager hazard-control capability and worker consultation skills, matched to the hazards in your workplace.
Official sources
Aotearoa New Zealand
Detailed country guideStatutory dutyThe Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 places a primary duty on PCBUs, so far as reasonably practicable, and due diligence duties on officers. Work-related mental health is part of health.
Regulator guidanceWorkSafe New Zealand guidance explains how to identify, control and review psychosocial risks with worker participation.
Voluntary standardISO 45003 may be used as voluntary guidance.
Recommended implementationRole-specific manager capability, clear reporting routes and an annual governance review of controls.
Official sources
United Kingdom (Great Britain)
Detailed country guideStatutory dutyThe Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require suitable and sufficient risk assessment, which includes work-related stress, and adequate health and safety training. There is no single universal statutory stress training course for managers. Northern Ireland has separate law.
Regulator guidanceHSE publishes stress guidance and the Management Standards approach. These are regulator guidance, not legislation.
Voluntary standardISO 45003 may be used as voluntary guidance.
Recommended implementationManager capability to assess demands, control, support, role and change, plus consultation training for representatives.
Official sources
European Union
Detailed country guideStatutory dutyThe Framework Directive 89/391/EEC sets employer duties to assess risks and to inform and train workers. Each Member State transposes it differently, so documentation, representative training and psychosocial specifics vary by country. The EU does not mandate identical documented training in every state.
Regulator guidanceEU-OSHA and national labour inspectorates publish guidance. Check the national authority where people work.
Voluntary standardISO 45003 may be used as voluntary guidance. Some earlier national provisions have been superseded; check current text.
Recommended implementationBuild one group baseline, then adapt to national rules, works council or representative arrangements and language needs.
Official sources
Canada
Statutory dutyFederal (Canada Labour Code Part II) and provincial or territorial OHS laws apply by sector and location. Harassment and violence prevention duties, including training, are set in the applicable law and differ by jurisdiction. Committee training and certification rules vary.
Regulator guidanceCCOHS and provincial regulators publish practical guidance.
Voluntary standardCSA Z1003 (psychological health and safety in the workplace) is a voluntary national standard, not legislation, though it may be referenced in practice.
Recommended implementationConfirm the federal or provincial regime per site, then match investigator, manager and committee capability to it.
Official sources
United States
Statutory dutyThere is no general federal psychosocial-hazard standard. OSHA’s General Duty Clause can apply to recognised serious hazards such as workplace violence. Federal anti-harassment law is enforced by the EEOC; some states require harassment-prevention training for specified employers.
Regulator guidanceOSHA and EEOC publish guidance. State law requirements differ.
Voluntary standardThe Surgeon General’s Framework for Workplace Mental Health and Well-Being and ISO 45003 are voluntary.
Recommended implementationTreat anti-harassment compliance and psychosocial hazard control as related but different programmes.
Official sources
Global / other (ISO 45003)
Statutory dutyNot applicable at global level. Local law where people work determines duties; a country-specific guide is published only after local sources are checked.
Regulator guidanceUse the national OSH authority for each country of operation.
Voluntary standardISO 45003:2021 is voluntary guidance for managing psychosocial risk within an OHS management system. It is not legislation and is not a certification standard.
Recommended implementationUse ISO 45003 as a common framework, then verify local legal duties before training design.
Official sources