WorkSafe Tasmania

WorkSafe Tasmania

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Provisional improvement notices (PIN)

A Provisional Improvement Notice (PIN) is a formal notice issued by a health and safety representative (HSR) under the work health and safety laws. The PIN is a tool for HSRs to identify and address health and safety concerns in the workplace.

When an HSR believes that there is a health and safety issue in the workplace, they can issue a PIN to the person or entity responsible for the workplace, such as the Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU) or manager. The PIN must specify the alleged contravention of the laws and provide details of the improvement that is required to address the issue.

Once a PIN is issued, the person/entity receiving the notice must take action to remedy the identified health and safety concern. If they do not agree with the notice, they can request a review of the PIN. If the PIN is not complied with, the HSR can escalate the matter to the work health and safety Regulator, who may take further action to enforce compliance.

It’s important to note that a PIN is a provisional notice, which means it is not legally binding and does not carry penalties. However, it is a formal step that can be used by HSRs to raise health and safety concerns in the workplace and encourage action to address them.

Examples of when a PIN may be issued include:

  • excessive noise levels in the workplace
  • an ongoing requirement to manually lift heavy objects
  • regular exposure to hazardous chemicals
  • unguarded machines
  • lack of consultation on work health and safety matters.

The HSR may issue a PIN requiring the person to:

  • Fix the breach
  • Prevent a likely breach from occurring;
  • Fix the things causing the breach or likely breach.

A PIN can’t be issued for a matter that a WorkSafe inspector has already addressed.

When a HSR can issue a PIN

The process for an HSR to issue a PIN in Tasmania typically involves the following steps:

  • Eligibility: The HSR must be elected/appointed under the in accordance with the work health and safety laws and be authorised to issue a PIN. A HSR can only issue a PIN if they have completed an approved HSR training course.
  • Grounds for issuing a PIN: The HSR must have reasonable grounds to believe that there is a breach of the work health and safety laws (or an imminent risk of a breach) that poses a serious risk to health or safety in the workplace.
  • Consultation: Before issuing a PIN, the HSR is required to consult with the relevant person responsible for the work health and safety (such as the PCBU), and attempt to resolve the issue through discussions and negotiations.
  • Issuing the PIN: If the issue is not resolved through consultation, the HSR may issue a written PIN to the person responsible for the alleged breach. The PIN must specify the breach, the provisions of the work health and safety laws alleged to have been breached, and the actions required to fix the breach.
  • Remedy requirement: A HSR must give the person at least 8 days from the notice to fix the breach.

Who a PIN can be issued to

If consultation with the HSR and the PCBU or any other relevant person (such as an employer) about the issue and attempts to resolve it through informal means are unsuccessful, a PIN must be issued.

The PIN may be issued to anyone: a PCBU, a worker, manager, officer or others at the workplace who appear to be over 16 years of age.

Examples of why a PIN may be issued

  • A worker finds that a valve from a steam line becomes displaced, allowing a jet of steam to escape. The worker refers the issue to their HSR who takes it up with the supervisor. The supervisor, after consulting with the HSR on how it can be fixed, settles the matter on the spot by calling in maintenance staff immediately. However, if the leak is not fixed, and the HSR believes that the leaking pipe poses a risk to people in the workplace (thereby contravening the work health and safety laws), the HSR may issue a PIN to the PCBU and serve it to the supervisor. The supervisor must bring the PIN to the attention of the PCBU, who has an obligation to fix the breach. In this example, a PIN would state that the HSR believes there is a contravention of section 19 of the Work Health and Safety Act.
  • Cleaning staff are working in an office building after hours, using the stairwell to move between floors. Due to an electrical problem, the lights have recently gone out in the stairwell causing poor visibility. Despite repeated requests from the cleaners’ HSR to the building manager, the problem has not been fixed. Therefore the HSR issues a PIN to the building manager. In this example, the HSR believes that the building manager has contravened section 20 of the Work Health and Safety Act.

Putting the PIN in writing

The PIN must be in writing.

A separate PIN must be written for each contravention.

WorkSafe has a template that you may use (see Resources below). If you create your own PIN, it must include:

  • Details of the alleged breach: The PIN should clearly specify the health and safety issue that is believed to be a breach of the work health and safety laws. This should include a description of the issue and the relevant regulations or sections of the act.
  • Actions required to remedy the issue: The PIN may include directions about the measures to be taken to fix the breach (or prevent the likely breach) or the matters or activities causing the breach/likely breach. This could include measures that need to be implemented, such as installing safety guards on machinery, providing additional training, or fixing hazards, as well as any other steps necessary to achieve compliance with the WHS Act.
  • Timeframe for compliance: The PIN should specify a reasonable and practical timeframe for the PCBU to take action to comply with the notice. This should be at least 8 days.
  • Contact information: The PIN should include the name and contact details of the HSR issuing the notice and the date the notice is issued.
  • Relevant legislation: The PIN should include the specific sections of the work health and safety act or regulations that are relevant to the breach. This will provide clear and specific information about the legal basis for the notice.
  • Signature: The PIN should be signed by the HSR who is issuing the notice.

A HSR is allowed to make minor changes to the PIN:

  • to clarify matters by simplifying language or removing jargon
  • to correct errors or references
  • to reflect changes of address or other circumstances.

Issuing the PIN

The HSR can issue the PIN by:

  • delivering it personally to the person
  • sending it by post, email, or fax to the person’s usual or last known home or business address
  • leaving it for the person at the person’s usual or last known home or business address with a person who appears to be over 16 years old and who appears to work or live there
  • leaving it for the person at the workplace the notice relates to, with a person who is or appears to be a person with management or control of the workplace.

If the PIN is issued to a PCBU as an organisation, the HSR would physically give the PIN to the management representative they have been consulting with over the matter.

Will a mistake on a PIN make it invalid?

A PIN is valid if it sufficiently identifies the duty holder that the PIN is issued to, even if the correct name of the organisation or person has not been used; for example:

  • the person’s name is misspelt
  • the formal name of the organisation hasn’t been used.

A PIN is invalid if the mistake causes or is likely to cause substantial injustice; for example:

  • the PIN states the wrong section of the work health and safety act or regulations that has been breached
  • the PIN refers to a matter that isn’t related to the health and safety breach.

If a HSR becomes aware that they have issued an invalid PIN, they should cancel the PIN and issue a new one.

Cancelling the PIN

To cancel a PIN at any time, the HSR must write to the person who was issued the PIN.

A valid PIN doesn’t need to be cancelled once it has been complied with.

Displaying the PIN

The person issued with a PIN must display a copy of it in a prominent place at or near the workplace or part of the workplace where the work is being carried out that is affected by the PIN. The PIN must be displayed during the period that it is in force.

The PIN must not be intentionally removed, destroyed, damaged or defaced during the period that it is in force.

Complying with the PIN

The person issued with the PIN must comply with it within the specific timeframe, unless they have made a request for WorkSafe Tasmania to appoint an Inspector to review it.

Getting a WorkSafe Inspector to review a PIN

The person issued with a PIN — or if they are a worker, their PCBU — can ask for a WorkSafe inspector to be appointed to review the PIN. They must make this request within 7 days of the PIN being issued.

An inspector will attend the workplace as soon as practicable after the request. The inspector can review a PIN even if its time period has expired.

The PIN is stayed (temporarily suspended) until the inspector determines the matter.

The inspector will :

  • seek information from the HSR who issued the PIN and the person it was issued to
  • find out why a PIN was issued, whether the PIN was correctly issued and why it is being disputed.

After reviewed the PIN, the inspector must either:

  • confirm the PIN, or
  • confirm the PIN with changes, or
  • cancel the PIN.

Confirming the PIN (with or without changes) is taken to be an Improvement Notice issued by the inspector. An Improvement Notice still requires a person to fix the contravention, but it is issued directly from the inspector.

Once an inspector has reviewed and made a decision, they must then give a copy of their decision:

  • to the person who asked for the PIN to be reviewed
  • to the HSR who issued the PIN.

If the person issued with the PIN, the HSR who issued the PIN, an affected worker, another affected HSR or a PCBU don’t agree with the decision, they can ask WorkSafe Tasmania to review the inspector’s decision.

Resources

PIN template (PDF, 638.8 KB)

Last updated: 8 May 2023
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