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Skodel Newsletter · July 2026 |
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A New Duty, and the End of PAW
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What NSW's new Codes of Practice duty means for employers, and what to do before PAW closes for good on 2 October 2026
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The Change
Codes of Practice move from guidance to an enforceable standard
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Before
SafeWork NSW Codes of Practice previously provided detailed guidance on meeting WHS standards. Inspectors and courts often referred to them as evidence around concepts such as ‘reasonably practicable’ - but they were not legally enforceable.
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The Trigger
The Industrial Relations and Other Legislation Amendment (Workplace Protections) Act 2025, assented 3 July 2025, inserts new section 26A into the WHS Act.
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From 1 July 2026
PCBUs must either comply with an approved Code of Practice, or demonstrate an equivalent or higher standard of health and safety through an alternative approach.
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Also This Month
PAW Is Winding Down
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The People at Work survey closed to new responses on 1 July 2026. The platform itself stays live until 2 October 2026, after which existing accounts, data and reports will no longer be accessible.
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What to do before 2 October 2026
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01 Export any historical PAW survey data and reports you want to keep - the platform will be inaccessible after 2 October.
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02 Confirm which psychosocial hazards you still need to assess under the Code.
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03 Put a replacement survey or assessment process in place before your next review cycle.
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The Code
Why Psychosocial Hazards Are the Sharpest Edge
NSW already has a specific instrument - the Managing Psychosocial Hazards at Work Code of Practice (the Code).
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The direct question employers must now answer: “Are we complying with the requirements of the Code, or can we prove our alternative approach delivers an equivalent or higher standard?”
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| ⚠ Inadequate change consultation |
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| ⚠ Remote or isolated work |
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The Evidentiary Problem
Employers who cannot demonstrate Code compliance or an equivalent standard face greater regulatory and litigation risk.
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Informal awareness of psychosocial hazards is not enough - regulators and courts will be looking for a documented, repeatable system of work. As outlined in the Code, “A PCBU must eliminate psychosocial hazards and manage risks to health and safety arising from work so far as is reasonably practicable”, noting the following four steps as a risk management process:
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04
Review control measures
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What the Code Effectively Requires
Four capabilities employers now need in place
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A system of work for psychosocial hazards
Survey data scored for the prevalence and impact of psychosocial hazards across employees.
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Trend evidence over time
Assessments across multiple consultations, collated into trend reports so you can evidence how you are monitoring control effectiveness.
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Findings linked to controls
Risk-banded reporting shows which hazards were found, what controls followed, and the outcome.
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Leadership capability
Leader training grounded in the same framework closes the loop between data and day-to-day behaviour.
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The Practical Takeaway
From 1 July 2026, awareness of psychosocial hazards is not enough. Employers need a system of work that identifies hazards against a recognised framework and illustrates a risk management process.
For organisations already using Skodel to run assessments, generate risk-banded reports, much of that infrastructure is already in place.
The task ahead: keep the evidence trail complete, current, and ready.
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