Work Health and Safety (Industrial Manslaughter) Amendment Bill
Bills (Second Reading) - Thursday 16 November 2023
Ms CLANCY (Elder) (16:29): I proudly rise today in strong support of the Work Health and Safety (Industrial Manslaughter) Amendment Bill 2023, which seeks to amend the Work Health and Safety Act 2012.
Reform such as the bill before us today is one of the many reasons why I am so proud to be union, proud to be Labor and proud to be a part of the Malinauskas government. This government, and indeed the broader union movement, are firmly committed to the idea that every worker deserves the right to come home safely at the end of each and every working day. Sadly, even in a nation as wealthy and fortunate as ours, this is too often not the case. In the last 10 years alone, more than 100 South Australians have lost their lives at work, including 15 who lost their lives in 2022. These statistics, while already disturbing, do not account for deaths from occupational diseases such as asbestosis or silicosis or deaths related to mental illness caused by work.
When somebody dies at work, something has almost certainly gone wrong. Accidents can and do happen, but it is simply not an accident when an employer has been reckless about something they know causes a serious risk. The first responsibility of every employer, as I know it is for many of the wonderful businesses in my community, must be to provide a safe and respectful workplace.
This bill to criminalise industrial manslaughter ensures there is an appropriate penalty for those dodgy employers or businesses who do not meet the obligations they already have, rather than introducing any new legal obligations. This way, we do not introduce any burden on the overwhelming number of businesses in this state who are doing the right thing. However, we will not be shy in holding to account those who place a worker's life at risk, ensuring the most serious health and safety breaches carry a penalty more appropriate to the crime: a maximum penalty of a fine of up to $18 million for companies and up to 20 years' imprisonment for individuals.
Those of us who currently reside on this side of the house will unashamedly prioritise legislating in the interests of labour and in the interests of working people, not because we do not support business, or whatever slander may be thrown at us that says otherwise, but because we understand that a rising tide can lift all boats, so long as you have one. As policymakers, we can legislate in the interests of working people not to the detriment of capital but in support of all South Australians. South Australians recognise this, and they understand the power of government to make the lives of people better.
This bill, which has been supported immensely through consultation with both the South Australian union movement and the South Australian business community, shows we can get this balance right. Both agree: if you kill a worker, you should go to jail. Prior to our election, we promised the people of South Australia that we would recognise this crime and treat it like one. Through the passage of this bill, we will fulfil our commitment to introduce an offence of industrial manslaughter in South Australia.
The bill allows for a person to be convicted of industrial manslaughter if they breach a health and safety duty, either recklessly or with gross negligence, and this causes the death of another person. This includes the primary duty of care of a person undertaking or conducting a business to ensure, as far as reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers they engage. Industrial manslaughter laws must serve as a potent deterrent for grave violations of workplace health and safety, imposing penalties that go some way to acknowledging the irreplaceable value of human life and the profound impact on South Australians when their loved ones do not come home from work.
This reform has, unfortunately, taken too long. Instead of being a national leader in workers' rights—and I always love it when South Australia is coming out ahead and doing something first—we now lag behind the rest of the nation. In addition to the commonwealth committing to introduce their own federal industrial manslaughter laws, industrial manslaughter is now already a crime in the ACT, the Northern Territory, Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia. By passing this bill, South Australia joins other parts of the nation in recognising the severity of preventable workplace deaths.
We should also strive for consistency with the recommendations of the 2018 national review into the model work health and safety laws, which recommends the introduction of an industrial manslaughter offence in the model work health and safety act as well as the industrial manslaughter laws of other jurisdictions across the country.
It is also important to note that this reform was developed through community consultation. In addition to our mandate to criminalise industrial manslaughter following the state election, our government sought the insight and experiences of a cross-section of South Australia to strengthen this bill even further. Without genuine consultation across the community, especially those with vested interests in capital or labour, the legislation would fail to accomplish its goal of deterring unlawful dangerous behaviour. We need consultation and cooperation throughout the business community and their representatives, a balance I firmly believe is reflected in this bill.
Following our government's election, we released a discussion paper and held roundtable forums with unions and business groups to discuss the design of laws to criminalise industrial manslaughter. This discussion paper and the roundtable conversations were followed by two consultation drafts for comment. A number of other forums and discussions were also held through this period to provide further constructive feedback on the bill.
I would particularly like to thank every single worker, unionist and business leader who participated in the extensive consultation process that helped bring this bill before us. They have been part of something so incredibly important, so meaningful, and, we hope, genuinely life-saving. I would also like to thank my friend the Attorney-General and his team for their tireless work in bringing this election commitment to the South Australian Labor Party and empowering us to fulfil that commitment to the people of this state in only our second year of government.
As the Attorney-General touched on in his contribution in the other place, I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to Andrea Madeley and Pam Gurner-Hall for their advocacy and integral role in this reform. Their leadership and strength in the defiance of the loss they experienced when their loved ones never came home is inspiring, and it has made a difference. Every single member in this place should be inspired by your tireless efforts to make South Australia a better and safer place.
Every single South Australian deserves to come home safely at the end of the day, and our work in this parliament is not over until that is a certainty. This is not radical or antibusiness. It is simple: if your gross negligence or recklessness causes the death of another person at your workplace, you should go to jail. I commend the bill to the house.
