Health and Safety Guidelines for Remote Work - Your Well-being Matters
This guide aims to provide a comprehensive overview of considerations and actions required when implementing a remote work arrangement, ensuring both productivity and safety.
Understanding Remote Work:
A remote work arrangement is an agreement between a worker and the workplace to perform suitable tasks from their home as part of their regular job responsibilities. This arrangement should cover aspects such as:
- The designated home-based work location.
- Working hours and days allocated for remote work.
- Essential equipment needed for safe and productive work.
- Communication methods.
- Clear work performance expectations.
Work Health and Safety Considerations:
Collaboration between employers and workers is crucial to identify and minimize potential work health and safety risks.
Employers: Employers bear the primary duty of care, ensuring the health and safety of remote workers. This includes taking practical measures to address potential risks associated with working from home.
Workers: Workers are responsible for their own health and safety, adhering to health and safety policies, procedures, and instructions provided by their employer. This involves following proper procedures, using equipment correctly, maintaining a safe work environment, and promptly reporting changes that may impact their health and safety.
Key Points for Workers:
- Adherence to work procedures and equipment usage instructions.
- Maintenance of a safe home work environment.
- Proper care of equipment provided by the workplace.
- Personal responsibility for in-home safety, including electrical equipment maintenance and smoke alarm installation.
- Reporting any changes that may affect health and safety while working from home.
Remember, maintaining personal health is vital when working from home; the Healthy Habits at Home checklist can assist. For detailed insights and practical tips, complete the Working from Home online learning module.
Workers Compensation and Rehabilitation:
Injuries sustained during remote work are compensable if they occur in the course of employment and are significantly related to work activities. Recess breaks are also covered unless injuries result from voluntarily subjecting oneself to abnormal risks.
Employer's Considerations for Remote Work:
Before commencing remote work, employers should:
Policy and Procedures:
- Develop a clear workplace policy and procedure for remote work, easily accessible to workers.
- Assess the suitability of remote work on a temporary or permanent, case-by-case basis, considering job roles and situations.
- Encourage employees to assess their home-based work areas using the provided Health and Safety Checklist.
Equipment, IT, and Insurance:
- Implement secure information systems as per workplace policy.
- Ensure the appropriateness of workstation layout and equipment to minimize injury risks.
- Clarify responsibilities and costs associated with home-based work setups, including equipment provision and maintenance.
- Review insurance arrangements for items used for remote work.
Consultation and Job Design:
- Identify tasks suitable for remote work.
- Establish clear boundaries between work and non-work hours to mitigate fatigue and stress.
- Agree on communication methods to reduce the impact of working in isolation.
Further Information and Resources:
- Complete the Working from Home online learning module.
- Safe use of laptops.
- Healthy Habits at Home checklist.
Relevant Legislation: