Psychosocial Risk Resource
Psychosocial Code of Practice
What PCBUs, officers, and supervisors need to understand about psychosocial hazards Codes of Practice, with Western Australia's approved Code as the practical reference point. Last updated 7 October 2025.
Why this matters
Psychosocial hazards Codes of Practice explain what regulators consider reasonably practicable when organisations identify, assess, control, and review psychosocial hazards at work. The national model Code and approved jurisdictional Codes are the practical bridge between legal duties and day-to-day WHS management.
Western Australia's Code is approved under the Work Health and Safety Act 2020 and is a useful practical reference for boards, HSEQ teams, and operations leaders. See WorkSafe WA — Code of Practice: Psychosocial hazards in the workplace.
How we validate
This guide is mapped to Safe Work Australia's model Code of Practice, WorkSafe WA's approved Code, and the regulator-aligned assessment process used across this psychosocial risk resource library.
Direct answer: what is a psychosocial hazards Code of Practice?
A psychosocial hazards Code of Practice explains how PCBUs should identify, assess, control, and review workplace conditions that can cause psychological harm. Approved Codes are practical compliance benchmarks: they are not Acts or Regulations, but they can be used as evidence of what is known about hazards and reasonably practicable controls.
What a Code expects you to show
Codes of Practice are not just education documents. They describe the evidence pattern regulators expect to see when they ask whether a PCBU has taken reasonably practicable steps.
- Psychosocial hazards have been identified through consultation, data, and work observation.
- Risk has been assessed with consideration of duration, frequency, severity, and interaction between hazards.
- Controls are selected using the hierarchy of controls and assigned to accountable owners.
- Workers and health and safety representatives are consulted before controls are finalised.
- Controls are reviewed after incidents, changes, new information, or signs they are ineffective.
Start with Western Australia
The WA Code summary gives the most concrete implementation path for Echo's current Australian market context: PCBUs, officers, mining and FIFO operations, construction principals, healthcare operators, local government, and labour hire providers.
Read the WA Code summary
Use the WA guide for a checklist, inspector expectations, practical control examples, and evidence to keep inspection-ready.
Link the Code to the assessment cycle
- Psychosocial risk assessment — identify, assess, control, and review hazards with a documented matrix and evidence log.
- Compliance by jurisdiction — compare WA, NSW, Queensland, and model Code expectations.
- ISO 45003 guidance — integrate psychosocial risk guidance into an ISO 45001-aligned management system.
Frequently asked questions
Is a Code of Practice legally binding?
Codes of Practice are not Acts or Regulations, but approved Codes can be used in proceedings as evidence of what is known about a hazard, risk, or control. They are a practical benchmark for what may be considered reasonably practicable.
Should we use the model Code or a jurisdictional Code?
Use the model Code as the national baseline, then check whether your jurisdiction has approved a local Code or supplementary guidance. Western Australia, New South Wales, and Queensland have approved psychosocial hazard Codes.
How does Echo help with Code-aligned evidence?
Echo supports the Code cycle by capturing protected worker voice, tagging hazards, linking insights to control actions, and retaining evidence that the organisation identified, acted, and reviewed rather than waiting for harm.