Occupational health and safety reforms will deliver up to $2 billion in productivity gains according to a statement issued by the Federal Minister for Workplace Relations, Senator Chris Evans said.

 

The Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) for the harmonisation of health and safety regulations was released by Safe Work Australia, which found that the Government’s planned reforms would result in significant savings through productivity gains.

 

“While there will be one‐off implementation costs, the quantitative analysis undertaken at the national level for adopting the model WHS Regulations indicates net benefits (i.e. after implementation costs) of around $250 million per annum to the Australian economy over each of the next 10 years,” the report found.

 

The report concludes that national harmonisation of OH&S laws is preferable, finding that both single-state and multi-state businesses are expected to benefit from the reforms.

 

“Multi‐state businesses are expected to benefit from harmonisation by approximately $80 million per annum. They will gain both compliance costs savings and expected work health and safety outcomes over the next decade. While these businesses face initial adjustment costs, the compliance and safety benefits are expected to be considerably greater and this is before productivity benefits are even considered.”

 

The regulatory reform has received support from the Ai Group, the ACCI, the ACTU and the Australian Constructors Association as well as the Business Council of Australia and the Australian Federation of Employers and Industry. 

 

The RIS can be found here