Responsibilities for safety and health are placed on all parties at the workplace. The employer’s general ‘duty of care’ obligations for safety and health under the WHS Act include:

• providing a workplace and safe system of work so employees are not exposed to hazards;
• providing employees with information, instruction, training and supervision to enable them to work in a safe manner; and
• consulting and cooperating with employees and safety and health representatives in matters related to safety and health at work.

Employees also have obligations under the WHS Act. They must take reasonable care to ensure their own safety and health at work and that of others affected by their work and report any situations that may be hazardous. Their duty for safety and health at the workplace is complementary to the employer’s duty and they need to receive adequate information, instruction, training and supervision to fulfil it.

While knowledge is still growing, some evidence suggests that sleep deprivation, sleep disturbance and fatigue are health risks commonly associated with long working hours. Fatigue has also been identified as a potential health risk with work that involves shifts or regular or periodic night work.

When considering safety and health issues associated with working hours arrangements, it should be noted that ‘work life’ and ‘personal life’ are inter-related, and both can impact on each other, with personal life having the ability to influence a person’s fitness for work.