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Skodel Newsletter · September 2026
What "reasonably practicable" means in practice
In this newsletter
| 1. Does asking staff about hazards create more risk? (plus the legal test in full) |
| 2. Comcare v Commonwealth (Department of Defence) |
| 3. Other common trigger events to watch for |
| 4. Hazards at play |
| 5. How to use this in your workplace |
| 6. Example controls |
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Content note: Item 2 references a workplace death by suicide. If you or someone you know needs support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
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Key Figures
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$188k
Fine in the first Commonwealth conviction for failing to manage psychosocial risk
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4
Separate performance management plans the worker was placed on over six months
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1. A common question
Does asking staff about hazards create more risk than not asking?
No. One of the factors in determining what is "reasonably practicable" is measured against what you knew or ought reasonably to have known. The model Code of Practice names staff surveys as a standard way of identifying psychosocial hazards. Not asking doesn't remove knowledge from the equation, it's a factor against you, not a shield.
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Quick reference · the legal test in full
Section 18, WHS Act 2011 (NSW) defines reasonably practicable as weighing up: the likelihood of the hazard or risk occurring, the degree of harm it could cause, what you know or ought reasonably to know about the hazard and ways to control it, the availability and suitability of those controls, and, once the risk and options are assessed, whether the cost of controls would be grossly disproportionate to the risk.
Regulation 55D then sets the actual duty: eliminate psychosocial risks so far as reasonably practicable, or minimise them if elimination isn't possible, having regard to matters including the duration, frequency and severity of exposure, how hazards interact, job design, systems of work, and the training, instruction and supervision given to workers.
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| 2. Skodel Case Analysis |
Comcare v Commonwealth (Department of Defence) |
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A quick recap, since we've covered this one before: in December 2025, an NSW Local Court convicted the Commonwealth Department of Defence, the first Commonwealth employer conviction for failing to manage psychosocial risk. A RAAF technician was placed on four performance management plans over six months, with no training in place for supervisors to recognise that process as a hazard. $188,000 fine, plus an adverse publicity order.
Read the case background →
Let's look at some potential controls for a hazard like this.
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Job demands
Structured manager check-ins to review workload early · temporary support during sustained peaks.
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Poor support
Manager training to recognise distress and respond · clear, low-stigma pathways to ask for help.
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| 3. Other Common Trigger Events |
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Not every workplace has a formal performance management process running at any given time, but every workplace has moments like it: predictable, foreseeable, and worth the same proactive check-in.
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Restructures or redundancies
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Change management
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Return to work after extended leave
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Poor support
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A change of manager or reporting line
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Role clarity
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Promotion decisions or internal knock-backs
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Reward & recognition
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Same principle as the case above: if the event is predictable, the response to it should be too, not left to whichever manager happens to be handling it at the time.
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Job Demands
A performance process became the hazard, unmanaged
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High
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Poor Support
Visible distress not met with support or workload change
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High
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The trigger events above, unmanaged, carry the same risk
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Mod-High
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| 5. How To Use This In Your Workplace |
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| Treat distress you can see, survey comments, and leave patterns as things you already know, whether or not they're formally escalated. |
| Train the people running any process with real consequences for someone's job to recognise when that process is becoming the hazard. |
| List the predictable events on your own calendar, restructures, return-to-work, manager changes, and check each has a proactive step attached, not just a policy. |
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6. Example Controls
For the trigger events above. Starting points, not a checklist, evidence from your own people should always come first.
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Poor organisational change management
Consult staff before changes are finalised, not just inform them afterward · give adequate notice and transition time, with support during the change period.
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All 17 hazard categories, with practical controls for each.
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Upcoming session · 18 September 2026
Psychosocial Hazards in the Workplace: From Compliance Obligation to Practical Action
With Sam McKenzie, Ian Fagan and Ben Chinwah, hosted with Benchmark OHS.
Register for the webinar →
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Skodel · Psychosocial risk assessment for Australian workplaces · skodel.com
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