Under the model Work Health and Safety Regulations, a person conducting a business or undertaking must identify psychosocial hazards, eliminate the risk so far as is reasonably practicable, and where elimination is not possible, minimise the risk using control measures. Since 1 December 2025 these duties have been enforceable in every Australian state and territory. From 1 July 2026, NSW businesses must comply with the approved Code of Practice: Managing psychosocial hazards at work or demonstrate an equivalent standard.
Regulators expect control measures based on the actual risk profile of the work. Generic statements do not satisfy the duty, and higher-order controls that change the work itself are preferred over controls that ask the worker to cope. For a professional services business, this means the assessment must address the hazards that arise in your workplace rather than describing workplace stress in the abstract.
Psychosocial hazards specific to consulting and professional services
Professional services builds psychosocial risk into the commercial model. Billable-hour and utilisation targets make additional hours the default response to any pressure, and because the measure is individual, the resulting workload is experienced as personal inadequacy rather than a systemic issue. Client expectations of immediate availability extend the working day past any defined boundary, particularly where responsiveness is treated as a competitive advantage. Scope changes shift deliverables without shifting deadlines. Progression structures create insecurity that discourages raising workload as a problem, since capacity is read as a proxy for commitment. Hybrid and remote arrangements remove the informal contact through which a struggling colleague would once have been noticed.
The 17 psychosocial hazards covered
SafeWize professional services kits include a separate risk assessment for each recognised psychosocial hazard, approximately 5 to 6 pages per hazard, with the hazard described in your industry's language, the risk rated, and controls selected and mapped to the hierarchy of controls. The full list is set out on the psychosocial kits page.
What documentation a regulator asks for
In a WHS investigation, documentary evidence determines the outcome. Inspectors typically ask for the psychosocial risk assessment, the control measures selected and their position in the hierarchy of controls, evidence of worker consultation, and records showing controls have been reviewed. A statement that the workplace culture is positive is not a defence and does not appear in an audit trail.
Authoritative sources
The obligations described on this page come from the model WHS Regulations and the psychosocial hazards Code of Practice. The primary sources are published by Safe Work Australia and the state and territory regulators:
Your regulator: SafeWork NSW · WorkSafe Victoria · WorkSafe Queensland · SafeWork SA · WorkSafe WA · WorkSafe Tasmania · WorkSafe ACT · NT WorkSafe · Comcare (Commonwealth)
SafeWize is not a regulator. The kits are compliance documentation, not legal advice. Always check the current requirements with the regulator in your jurisdiction.