What responsibilities do PCBUs have to labour hire workers?
Under The WHS Act 2011 Persons Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU), including labour hire PCBUs and host PCBUs, have a primary duty of care. This means as a PCBU you need to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of labour hire workers you engage, cause to be engaged, or whose activities are influenced or directed by you.
Labour hire PCBUs must take positive steps to ensure that the workplace employees are sent to does not present risks to health and safety. This includes the risk of noise induced hearing loss.
Labour hire PCBUs are responsible for providing their employees with their pay and entitlements. They are the only PCBU that has knowledge of the full extent of their workers noise exposure, as their workers may be sent to one or multiple host employers. Labour hire PCBUs therefore have the duty under clause 58 of the WHS Regulation 2017 to organise and pay for the costs associated with audiometric testing.
Alternate arrangements may be considered where the host employer pays for the cost of audiometric testing for labour hire workers. This arrangement must be negotiated through effective consultation, cooperation, and coordination between the labour hire PCBU and host PCBU.
For more information on labour hire company duties under the WHS Act 2011, please refer to the following:
- Labour hire toolkit
- Labour hire - Safe Work Australia