Definitions

Current

In this Act —

approved code of practice means a code of practice approved under Part 14;

authorised, in Part 4 — see section 40;

Category 1 offence — see section 31;

Category 2 offence — see section 32;

Category 3 offence — see section 33;

chief executive, in relation to a Crown agency, means the person who is responsible for the day‑to‑day administration of the Crown agency;

Chief Inspector of Mines — see Schedule 1 Division 2;

Chief Inspector Petroleum Safety — see Schedule 1 Division 2;

compliance powers means the functions and powers conferred on an inspector under this Act;

condition includes limitation and restriction;

construct includes assemble, erect, reconstruct, reassemble and re‑erect;

corresponding regulator means the holder of a public office, or a public authority, of the Commonwealth, or of another State or a Territory, who or which is responsible for administering a corresponding WHS law;

corresponding WHS law means a law, or a part of a law, of the Commonwealth, or of another State or a Territory, that is prescribed as a corresponding WHS law;

covert operation means the performance of a function, or the exercise of a power, of a police officer in circumstances where —

(a)

a covert operation is undertaken by WA Police for the purpose of obtaining information about criminal activity; and

(b)

the performance of the function, or the exercise of the power, is not reasonably practicable without exposing a police officer to a serious risk to the police officer’s health or safety emanating from an immediate or imminent exposure to a hazard; and

(c)

unless the performance of the function, or the exercise of the power, is secret or confidential, it would be likely that —

(i)

the effectiveness of the performance of the function, or the exercise of the power, is reduced; or

(ii)

a person is exposed to the danger of physical harm arising from the actions of another person;

Crown agency means —

(a)

a department of the Public Service; or

(b)

WA Police; or

(c)

any other agency of the Crown that is not a body corporate;

dangerous incident, in Part 3 — see section 37;

dangerous operation means the performance of a function, or the exercise of a power, of a police officer in circumstances where the performance of that function, or the exercise of that power —

(a)

is reasonably necessary; and

(b)

is not reasonably practicable without exposing a police officer to a serious risk to the police officer’s health or safety emanating from an immediate or imminent exposure to a hazard;

demolition includes deconstruction;

design, in relation to plant, a substance or a structure, includes —

(a)

design of part of the plant, substance or structure; and

(b)

redesign or modify a design;

disclose, in relation to information, includes divulge or communicate to any person or publish;

discriminatory conduct, in Part 6 — see section 105;

document includes anything that falls within 1 or more of the following paragraphs —

(a)

a record of information, irrespective of how the information is recorded or stored or able to be recovered;

(b)

a thing on which there is writing;

(c)

a map, plan, graph, drawing or photograph;

(d)

a thing on which there are marks, figures, symbols or perforations that have a meaning for persons qualified to interpret them;

(e)

a thing from which images, sounds or writings can be reproduced with or without the aid of anything else;

(f)

a thing on which information is recorded or stored, whether electronically, magnetically, mechanically or by some other means;

eligible person, in Part 12 — see section 223;

employer organisation means an association or organisation of employers;

handling includes transport;

health means physical and psychological health;

health and safety duty — see section 30;

health and safety representative, in relation to a worker, means the health and safety representative elected under Part 5 for the work group of which the worker is a member;

import means to bring into the State, whether from outside Australia or otherwise;

industrial manslaughter — see section 30A;

inspector means an inspector appointed under Part 9;

internal reviewer means —

(a)

the regulator; or

(b)

a person appointed by the regulator under section 225;

IR entry authority means —

(a)

a right of entry permit as defined in the Industrial Relations Act 1979 section 49G(1); or

(b)

a permit issued under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Commonwealth) section 512;

local government member means —

(a)

a member of the council of a local government, or of the council of a regional local government, acting in that capacity; or

(b)

a member of the governing body of a regional subsidiary acting in that capacity, if the member was appointed to the governing body in their capacity as a member of the council of a local government involved in the formation of the regional subsidiary;

notifiable incident — see section 35;

officer — see section 4A;

person conducting a business or undertaking — see section 5;

plant includes —

(a)

any machinery, equipment, appliance, container, implement and tool; and

(b)

any component of any of those things; and

(c)

anything fitted or connected to any of those things;

prohibited reason, in Part 6 — see section 106;

provide, in relation to a document, includes produce;

public corporation means —

(a)

a local government, regional local government or regional subsidiary; or

(b)

any other body corporate established or continued for a public purpose under a written law;

reasonably practicable, in relation to a duty to ensure health and safety — see section 18;

regulator means the WorkSafe Commissioner — see Schedule 1 Division 1;

remuneration has the meaning given in the Salaries and Allowances Act 1975 section 4(1);

representative, in relation to a worker, means —

(a)

the health and safety representative for the worker; or

(b)

a union representing the worker; or

(c)

any other person the worker authorises to represent the worker;

reviewable decision, in Part 12 — see section 223;

serious injury or illness, in Part 3 — see section 36;

structure means anything that is constructed, whether fixed or moveable, temporary or permanent, and includes —

(a)

buildings, masts, towers, framework, pipelines, transport infrastructure and underground works (shafts or tunnels); and

(b)

any component of a structure; and

(c)

part of a structure;

substance means any natural or artificial substance, whether in the form of a solid, liquid, gas or vapour;

supply — see section 6;

Tribunal means the Work Health and Safety Tribunal — see Schedule 1 Division 5;

union means —

(a)

an employee organisation that is registered, or taken to be registered, under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (Commonwealth); or

(b)

an organisation of employees, or an association of employees, registered under the Industrial Relations Act 1979;

volunteer means a person who is acting on a voluntary basis (irrespective of whether the person receives out‑of‑pocket expenses);

WA Police means the Police Force of Western Australia provided for by the Police Act 1892;

WHS authority means any of the following —

(a)

the Minister;

(b)

the WHS department or a person working in the WHS department;

(c)

an inspector or a person assisting an inspector under section 166, 167B(7) or 167D;

(d)

the holder, or a person acting as the holder, of an office under Schedule 1 Division 1 or 2;

(e)

a body established or appointed under Schedule 1 Division 3 or 4;

(f)

a member, or a person acting as a member, of a body established or appointed under Schedule 1 Division 3 or 4;

(g)

any other person engaged in the administration of this Act;

WHS department means the department of the Public Service principally assisting in the administration of this Act;

WHS undertaking means an undertaking given under section 216(1);

worker — see section 7;

work group means a work group determined under Part 5;

Work Health and Safety Commission — see Schedule 1 Division 3;

workplace — see section 8.

[Section 4 amended: No. 43 of 2024 s. 160.]

This Act’s bill:Explanatory memorandum Second reading speech

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4 Definitions