In my 20+ years working in corporate events and operations, nobody ever asked me whether my workload was safe. We asked whether the venue was safe, whether the stage was safe, whether the cables were taped down. But the pressure, the late nights and the constant "just one more thing"? That was simply the job.
In Victoria, that has changed. Psychological health now sits right alongside physical safety, and employers are expected to manage it the same way.
What actually changed?
Employers in Victoria have always had a duty to provide a workplace that's safe for both physical and mental health. What the new regulations do is spell out how that duty applies to psychological risks. So far as is reasonably practicable, employers must:
- Identify psychosocial hazards in their workplace
- Assess the risks those hazards create, where needed
- Eliminate those risks, or reduce them if they can't be removed
- Monitor and review the controls, and update them when things change
This covers employees, contractors and labour-hire workers. WorkSafe Victoria has also published a Compliance Code with practical guidance, plus an optional prevention plan template.
What is a "psychosocial hazard"?
It's a feature of how work is designed, organised or experienced that can cause harm to someone's mental health. Examples named in the guidance include:
- High job demands and unrealistic workloads
- Bullying
- Sexual harassment
- Aggression or violence, including from customers or the public
- Exposure to traumatic events or content
Things like unclear roles, poor support and badly managed change can also create risk. If you've ever watched a great team slowly run out of fuel, you'll recognise most of these.
The part that surprised a lot of people
Here's the bit I think every People & Culture leader should know. Under the regulations, information, instruction or training can't be the main way you control these risks unless other measures aren't reasonably practicable.
In other words, you can't run a resilience workshop and call it done. If the real problem is that people are carrying two jobs, the first fix is the workload, not a breathing class.
As someone who runs breathing classes for a living, I think that's exactly right.
So where do wellbeing programs fit?
Good wellbeing programs don't replace the hard work of fixing job design. They support it. Done well, they help:
- Build a speak-up culture, so problems surface early instead of after someone burns out
- Strengthen connection between team members and managers, which is one of the best protections against stress
- Give people real tools for regulating their nervous system on hard days
- Show your people you mean it, when they sit alongside genuine changes to how work is done
The question isn't "workload fixes or wellbeing program". It's both, in the right order.
A simple place to start
- Ask your people. Where does work feel unsustainable? What gets in the way?
- Look at the work first. Workloads, deadlines, role clarity, how change is handled.
- Read the WorkSafe Compliance Code and use the prevention plan template to record what you find and what you'll do.
- Add support that people will actually use, designed around your team rather than off the shelf.
- Review it. The rules expect you to check your controls when things change, or when someone raises a concern.
If you're working through this right now and want to talk about how wellbeing sessions can sit alongside your risk work, I'd love to help.
This article is general information only, not legal advice. For the full requirements, see WorkSafe Victoria's Compliance Code: Psychological health (2025). Sources: Victorian Government announcement, 1 December 2025; MinterEllison and Hall & Wilcox summaries of the Occupational Health and Safety (Psychological Health) Regulations 2025.