Health and Safety – Major Law Reform

Monday 22 February 2016

The Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 is due to come into force on 4 April 2016. The legislation was brought about by the Pike River tragedy and is intended to reform completely the Health and Safety legislation in New Zealand.

Most significantly, it places the responsibility of ensuring health and safety on a person conducting a business or undertaking.

It is clear that such obligations will be on landlords, tenants, employers, or even property managers.

Both landlords and tenants who run businesses have the duty to ensure the health and safety of workers and other people who use the building in which the business is situated. They are required to eliminate and minimise risks so far as “reasonably practicable”.

There are high penalties for breaches of the law. Those penalties cannot be contracted out nor insured against.

In light of that, it is important to consider the following for landlords and tenants of commercial buildings:

1. Hazards need to be identified and strategies need to be put in place to deal with them.
2. Landlords and tenants are required to work together to develop and operate health and safety strategies for business premises and work places.
3. It is important to review hazards and strategies to determine what actions must be taken to ensure the safety of employees and others in relation to the businesses and building.

The above needs to be considered on a case by case basis. Care must be taken especially for very old buildings which have not been earthquake strengthened and which are deemed by the local council to be “earthquake-prone”.

Work Safe is the government department which has been set up to monitor, promote, and enforce the Health and Safety legislation in New Zealand. Work Safe has been working with lawyers and different industry groups to promote the understanding of the Act to lift the health and safety standards in all industries. Work Safe has indicated that they will enforce the Act and establish precedents to ensure that the law is taken seriously.

If you have any questions as a landlord, tenant, employer, or business owner, please contact Teresa Chan at Teresa Chan Law Limited, Level 3, Westpac Building, 106 George Street, Dunedin 9016, ph. 477 1069, or email teresa@tchanlaw.co.nz  If you are a Mandarin speaker, please ring Xiaoyan Mu at (022) 694 9917.

Note: The information in this article is general only. You should seek advice for specific situations.