The following information will bring you up-to-date about the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA) that came into effect on the 4th April 2016, and the increased levels of fines for non-compliance. Health and Safety Compliance is now no longer optional.

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It is a legal requirement for all PCBUs (a person conducting a business or undertaking) in NZ to have a working, fully compliant Health and Safety System operating - (no matter what size they are, or what type of work they do).

Failure to have an up-to-date, fully compliant, and functioning Health and Safety System operating could cost your PCBU up to $3 Million dollars in fines. And it could cost you, as an individual, up to $600,000 or five years’ imprisonment, or both. This is now a very serious matter that requires your urgent attention - please read the attached PDFs.

Director’s duties

Directors and other officers of a PCBU (a person conducting a business or undertaking) are required to exercise due diligence to ensure that the PCBU complies with its Workplace Health and Safety duties. Failure to comply with a due diligence duty will most likely will result in prosecution and a fine, the maximum level of which would be determined by whether or not the officer’s (your) failure exposed a person to a risk of death or serious injury or illness.