Shortly before our end-of-year break, WorkSafe Victoria offered the reminder that the Minister for Workplace Safety, Jill Hennessy, approved minor amendments to 11 compliance codes made under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (OHS Act). The codes came into effect Thursday 19 December 2019. A copy of the notice is available here.

The amendments to the codes were made to reflect amendments to section 35 and 36 of the OHS Act made by the Treasury and Finance Legislation Amendment Act 2018, and to improve style and branding consistency across the existing codes.

The amended codes are:

  • Confined spaces
  • Demolition
  • Excavation
  • Hazardous manual handling
  • Hazardous substances
  • Noise
  • Plant
  • Prevention of falls in general construction
  • Prevention of falls in housing construction
  • Managing asbestos in workplaces
  • Removing asbestos in workplaces

Copies of the new codes can be downloaded from the WorkSafe website or viewed at any WorkSafe office.