Managing Workload & Work Design Risks

Welcome to the comprehensive course on Managing Workload & Work Design Risks. In the modern workplace, mental wellbeing is not a matter of luck; it is a matter of design. This program is engineered to move beyond basic awareness of mental health, providing you with actionable strategies and a systematic approach to navigating the complex landscape of psychosocial health and safety. Grounded in the expertise of Dr. Phillip Voss, a Partner at Leading Safety, this course offers a robust foundation for understanding how to manage the design and management of work to ensure a thriving, compliant, and safe environment.

Psychosocial hazards arise from the design or management of work, the working environment, and workplace interactions. Unlike physical hazards, these risks are often invisible until they result in significant psychological or physical harm. This course guides you through the essential shift from a reactive stance to one of strategic prevention. You will explore the legal obligations under the WHS Act, including the duties of PCBUs and Officers, and learn how to implement the four-step risk management process: identifying hazards, assessing risks, controlling them, and reviewing measures.

Throughout the modules, we will dissect specific challenges such as managing job demands, ensuring role clarity, and mitigating harmful workplace behaviors like bullying and harassment. You will examine the critical distinction between psychosocial hazards and risks, and learn how to balance negative work factors with protective factors that foster resilience. By applying the Hierarchy of Controls, you will discover how to prioritize the elimination of risks through "good work design" rather than relying solely on administrative policies or individual coping mechanisms.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• Legal Foundations: Understand the primary duty of care under Section 19 of the WHS Act and the specific due diligence obligations for officers regarding psychosocial health.
• Hazard Identification: Learn to identify common psychosocial hazards, including high job demands, low job control, poor support, and lack of role clarity, using consultation, observation, and data review.
• Risk Assessment: Master the process of assessing risks by analyzing the duration, frequency, and severity of exposure, and understanding how different hazards interact to compound harm.
• The Hierarchy of Controls: Apply the hierarchy of controls to psychosocial risks, prioritizing the elimination of hazards and the redesign of work systems over lower-level administrative controls.
• Managing Harmful Behaviors: Develop strategies to prevent and manage workplace violence, aggression, bullying, and sexual harassment through policy, environment design, and culture change.
• Practical Application: Analyze real-world scenarios, such as the case of Perry v The Warehouse Group Ltd, to understand the legal and operational consequences of failing to manage workload risks.
• Consultation and Review: Implement effective consultation mechanisms to engage workers in the safety process and establish routine reviews to ensure control measures remain effective over time.

This course is essential for leaders, managers, and health and safety professionals who are responsible for the design of work and the wellbeing of their teams. By the end of this program, you will possess the knowledge and tools necessary to transform your organization's approach to safety, ensuring that mental wellbeing is designed into the very fabric of your operations.