B27 | Psychological health and safety: insights into the regulation of psychosocial hazards | Rapid research 20 mins
Tracks
Track 2 | Grand Ballroom 2 | Live Streamed & Filmed
| Saturday, July 9, 2022 |
| 11:15 AM - 11:35 AM |
| Grand Ballroom 2 |
Overview
Hybrid: In-person live +
Presenter
Mrs Sam Popple
Director - Psychological Health Unit
Office Of Industrial Relations
Psychological health and safety: insights into the regulation of psychosocial hazards
11:15 AM - 11:35 AMPromotional description
Psychosocial hazards are now coming to the fore of national and international work health and safety regulator efforts, despite long standing legislation that stipulates BOTH physical and psychosocial hazards must be managed at work.
However, anecdotally the complexities of psychosocial hazards have seen them relegated by regulators in favour of physical hazards that are conceptually easier to grasp. This is thought to be as a result of event based injuries that often have visible and tangible evidence trails.
Our research examines the data from a regulator to compare psychosocial hazard prioritisation and management to physical hazards. A further comparison was made between psychosocial hazards and musculoskeletal hazards as both of these hazard areas are thought to share defining features such as their cumulative nature.
However, anecdotally the complexities of psychosocial hazards have seen them relegated by regulators in favour of physical hazards that are conceptually easier to grasp. This is thought to be as a result of event based injuries that often have visible and tangible evidence trails.
Our research examines the data from a regulator to compare psychosocial hazard prioritisation and management to physical hazards. A further comparison was made between psychosocial hazards and musculoskeletal hazards as both of these hazard areas are thought to share defining features such as their cumulative nature.
Learning outcomes
Work health and safety (WHS) is a core knowledge domain for organisational psychologists. Growing societal and organisational recognition of work-related psychological health means organisational psychologists are in prime positions to engineer the scale of work design needed to systematically address psychosocial hazards and risks.
Attendees will gain understanding of regulators' role in compliance and enforcement of WHS legislation and particularly, how regulators prioritise and manage psychosocial hazards complaints and notifications in comparison to other hazards.
Attendees will apply the findings from this research to analyse why regulators may face difficulties in addressing psychosocial complaints and understand the complexity of regulating for hazards that occur in all workplaces and for all individuals but that can have different industry harm profiles.
Introduction of regulatory theory will enable attendees to analyse how theory assists strategy formulation to enhance WHS regulators' effectiveness.
Use of interactive presentation software will measure learning outcomes and attendee participation.
Attendees will gain understanding of regulators' role in compliance and enforcement of WHS legislation and particularly, how regulators prioritise and manage psychosocial hazards complaints and notifications in comparison to other hazards.
Attendees will apply the findings from this research to analyse why regulators may face difficulties in addressing psychosocial complaints and understand the complexity of regulating for hazards that occur in all workplaces and for all individuals but that can have different industry harm profiles.
Introduction of regulatory theory will enable attendees to analyse how theory assists strategy formulation to enhance WHS regulators' effectiveness.
Use of interactive presentation software will measure learning outcomes and attendee participation.
Author(s)
Popple, Sam
Way, Kirsten
Johnstone, Richard
Croucher, Richard
Miller, Peta
Way, Kirsten
Johnstone, Richard
Croucher, Richard
Miller, Peta
.....
Sam is Director of the psychological health unit at the Office of Industrial Relations. Sam is a registered psychologist trained in organisational psychology and is working in the growing field of psychosocial risk management within Queensland’s work health and safety regulator. Sam’s previous career as an intensive care nurse and running peer support programs for staff provided the bedrock for her passion in the wellbeing and welfare of staff, initially as a way to enhance patient outcomes – ‘look after your staff and they will look after the patients’. In the transition to a registered psychologist this broadened to not only unlocking worker potential to drive all outcomes but also the protection of workers from the broad suite of psychosocial risks that can often play out differently across different industries. Sam is a staunch feminist and has a keen interest in the swelling evidence of disadvantage for women at work.
