Keynote Panel Discussion – Getting Real with the Regulators

Panellists:

Justin Napier – General Manager Regulatory Operations Group, Comcare
Jim Kelly, Director Specialist Harm Prevention, SafeWork NSW
Jacqueline Agius, Work Health and Safety Commissioner, WorkSafe ACT
Robert Wicks, A/Executive Director, Specialised Health and Safety Services, Workplace Health and Safety Queensland

Moderator:

David Burroughs, Chief Mental Health Officer, Westpac

A candid discussion on psychosocial safety and workplace sexual harassment

The current focus on psychosocial safety, from codes of practice, guidance materials and new regulations, has led to a flurry of activity, the emergence of dozens of new providers, the rise of overnight experts, and a frenetic scramble by organisations to meet their compliance obligations in the prevention of mental health harm.

This session will help unpack the current and emerging Psychological Health & Safety landscape through candid conversations with several of the state and territory regulators from across Australia and will include the opportunity for audience Q&A.

Key Takeaways:

  • What are the regulators seeing – where are organisations getting things wrong?
  • Upsides and unintended challenges with the new regulatory landscape
  • Practically preventing Sexual Harassment from both a psychosocial risk and a positive duty obligations perspective
  • Going from compliance to efficacy – how can we ensure that what we are doing is not just preventing mental health harm, but improving mental health and organisational outcomes
  • Dealing with the ‘new experts’ – key challenges in working with providers who are new to this domain.
  • What’s next for psychosocial safety.