21 February 2013

Questions and Answers: New workplace health and safety agency

When will the new workplace health and safety agency start operating?
The intention is for it to be established and up and running from 1 December 2013.
What will happen to workplace health and safety investigations and operations in the
meantime?
It is business as usual for the time being. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and
Employment (MBIE) will continue to do this work. This means businesses and workers will
be dealing with same people in the same locations as before.

MBIE will be providing regular updates about the establishment of the new agency, and the
changes already underway, as plans progress.
What happens next?
Work will start on drafting the required legislation to set up the new agency. Ministers will
decide on board composition, the name of the new agency and other details in coming
months and the legislation to establish the agency is expected to be introduced in June. A
dedicated unit is being set up within MBIE to help establish the new entity.
What will the new workplace health and safety agency do?
The new agency will enforce workplace health and safety regulations, and work
collaboratively with employers and employees to embed and promote good workplace health
and safety practices. Its functions will be:

To monitor and enforce compliance with the primary workplace health and safety
legislation

To provide guidance, advice and information on workplace health and safety to duty
holders under the primary workplace health and safety legislation and to the
community

To promote and support education and training on workplace health and safety
matters

To foster a co-operative, consultative relationship between duty holders and the

person to whom they owe duties and their representatives in relation to workplace
health and safety matters

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To engage, promote and co-ordinate the implementation of workplace health and

safety, including the sharing of information, with regulators and other agencies that
contribute to workplace health and safety

To advise the Minister on the operation and effectiveness of the primary workplace
health and safety legislation and workplace health and safety system, and make
recommendations for legislative and system changes

To make recommendations to the Minister on the level of any funding including

levies or fees, to effectively carry out its legislative functions

To set standards and develop codes of practice as required under the primary
workplace health and safety legislation

To collect, analyse and publish statistics relating to workplace health and safety

Any other functions conferred on the Crown agent by any other act

Perform any additional function that the Minister directs under section 112 of the
Crown Entities Act 2004.

What kind of Crown Entity will the new agency be?

The new agency will be a Crown Agent with its own governance board and will have a
dedicated focus on workplace health and safety.

A Crown Agent is at arms-length from Ministers and is the only form of crown entity which
can be directed by Ministers to give effect to government policy which is an advantage given
further reform of the workplace health and safety system is likely.

New Zealands other workplace health and safety regulators the Civil Aviation Authority
and Maritime New Zealand are also Crown Agents.
What will happen to staff who currently do this workplace health and safety work?
It is expected that staff in the Ministrys Health and Safety Group will be transferred to the
new agency on the same terms and conditions of employment.

Who will be on the governance board of the new agency?

Those decisions are yet to be made. The board will have between five and nine members
with experience and knowledge of public sector governance and central government
processes, New Zealands workplace health and safety environment, perspectives of
employees and business, and administration or workplace health and safety legislative and
risk management frameworks.

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What will happen to the other workplace health and safety regulators Civil Aviation
Authority (for air), Maritime New Zealand (for ships) and Police (for commercial
vehicles)?
The new agency will do the functions currently undertaken by MBIE so there is no current
change to the roles of the other workplace health and safety regulators. They will keep their
current responsibilities for enforcing and investigating workplace accidents.
What other work is being done to improve New Zealands workplace health and safety
record?
The Minister of Labour set up the first wide-ranging review of the Workplace Health and
Safety System in 20 years, and the Independent Taskforce is due to report with its
recommendations by April 30. The Government will consider those recommendations and it
is expected there will be further reform after that.

Other initiatives include:

Increase in workplace health and safety funding of $37 million in Budget 2012.
Action plans, in collaboration with industry, which target the sectors where the most
harm is occurring construction, agriculture, forestry, manufacturing, fishing and
occupational health
The establishment of the High Hazards Unit
More frontline health and safety inspectors
The Lifting Our Game Programme, which is changing the way MBIE delivers health
and safety regulation to improve performance. This change focuses on lifting
capability at the frontline, and on building the systems, processes and tools to be
effective. This programme is expected to provide a strong foundation for the new
agency.

The Government is also rolling out a comprehensive response to the Pike River tragedy this
year. Read the Pike River Implementation Plan.

What will happen to the current changes being made to MBIEs Health and Safety
Group?
The work being done by MBIEs Health and Safety Group to fundamentally transform its
operations will continue and is expected to provide a strong foundation for the new agency.