If you are responsible for work health and safety in a South Australian workplace, you have probably heard the term “Approved Code of Practice”.

But do you know how much legal weight these documents carry or how they should be used within your organisation?

Approved Codes of Practice provide practical guidance on how businesses and other duty holders can meet their obligations under South Australia’s work health and safety legislation.

They do not replace proper risk management, but they provide an important benchmark against which your organisation’s safety practices may be assessed.

Ignoring a relevant Code of Practice can leave a significant gap in your WHS compliance framework.

What Is an Approved Code of Practice?

Approved Codes of Practice are practical guides developed to help people with work health and safety duties comply with the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 (SA) and the supporting Regulations.

Many South Australian Codes are based on national Model Codes of Practice developed by Safe Work Australia and subsequently approved for use in South Australia.

Codes provide guidance on specific hazards, activities and workplace responsibilities, including:

• hazardous manual tasks;
• confined spaces;
• hazardous chemicals;
• electrical risks;
• workplace facilities;
• working at heights;
• plant and machinery;
• noise;
• asbestos;
• workplace consultation; and
• psychosocial hazards.

Rather than simply describing a broad legal duty, a Code may explain how to:

• identify hazards;
• assess risks;
• select appropriate controls;
• consult workers;
• review control measures; and
• establish safe systems of work.

SafeWork SA describes approved Codes as guidance on best practice controls, how to achieve the standards required under the Act and effective ways to identify and manage workplace risks.

Are Codes of Practice Legally Binding?

Codes of Practice are not legislation and do not replace the duties contained in the WHS Act and Regulations.

Following every recommendation in a Code is not automatically mandatory in all circumstances.

However, approved Codes carry substantial legal and practical weight.

Under South Australia’s WHS framework:

• an approved Code may be used by an inspector when issuing an improvement or prohibition notice;
• a Code is admissible in court proceedings;
• a court may use a Code as evidence of what was known about a hazard or risk;
• a Code may provide evidence of available methods for controlling that risk; and
• a court may rely on it when determining what was reasonably practicable in the circumstances.

In most cases, following the relevant Code will assist a duty holder to comply with its underlying health and safety obligations.

However, compliance with a Code does not automatically mean every WHS risk has been addressed. Codes deal with particular topics and cannot cover every hazard that may arise within an individual workplace.

Can a Business Use a Different Approach?

A business may adopt a control that differs from the approach described in a Code of Practice.

However, it should be able to demonstrate that the alternative provides the same or a higher standard of health and safety.

A duty holder may also need to establish that a particular control recommended by the Code was not reasonably practicable in its circumstances.

SafeWork SA expressly recognises that alternative approaches may be acceptable where they achieve an equivalent or better safety outcome.

This means a business should not depart from a Code simply because the recommended approach is inconvenient or more expensive.

The decision should be supported by a genuine risk assessment that considers:

• the likelihood of the hazard or risk occurring;
• the degree of harm that may result;
• what the business knows or ought reasonably to know about the risk;
• available methods of eliminating or minimising the risk;
• the suitability of those controls; and
• the cost of the control, including whether the cost is grossly disproportionate to the risk.

Where an alternative approach is adopted, the organisation should clearly document:

• the relevant recommendation in the Code;
• the reason it was not followed;
• the alternative control selected;
• the evidence supporting that control;
• consultation undertaken with workers; and
• how the control will be monitored and reviewed.

The more serious the potential harm, the stronger the organisation’s reasoning and evidence should be.

What About Australian Standards?

Some Codes of Practice refer to Australian or Australian/New Zealand Standards.

SafeWork SA states that where an approved Code refers to one of these Standards, the risk controls specified in the Standard must also be complied with. It also identifies several Australian Standards that are themselves approved Codes of Practice in South Australia.

Businesses should therefore check:

• whether the relevant Standard is directly incorporated into legislation;
• whether it is listed as an approved Code in South Australia;
• whether it is referenced by another applicable Code;
• which edition of the Standard applies; and
• whether any South Australian variation or addendum changes the national guidance.

Do not assume that a procedure is compliant merely because it states that work will be undertaken “in accordance with the relevant Australian Standard”.

The organisation should identify the specific Standard and confirm that its systems, equipment and practices actually satisfy the applicable requirements.

New Psychosocial Hazard Codes

Two significant Approved Codes of Practice commenced in South Australia on 19 February 2026:

• Managing Psychosocial Hazards at Work; and
• Sexual and Gender-Based Harassment.

The Codes were based on national Model Codes and approved under section 274 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 (SA).

The psychosocial hazards Code provides practical guidance on identifying and managing risks that can cause psychological harm.

These risks may arise from:

• excessive or unreasonable job demands;
• low job control;
• poor organisational support;
• inadequate recognition;
• unclear roles;
• poorly managed organisational change;
• remote or isolated work;
• exposure to traumatic events;
• bullying;
• harassment;
• conflict; and
• violence or aggression.

The sexual and gender-based harassment Code provides more specific guidance on identifying and managing harmful workplace behaviours and the conditions that allow them to occur.

These Codes reinforce that psychological health must be managed with the same structured risk-management approach applied to physical safety.

A policy stating that bullying or harassment is prohibited will rarely be enough on its own.

Businesses should actively identify the workplace conditions that could create or increase psychosocial risk and implement preventative controls.

What Should Employers Review?

The introduction of the new Codes provides a timely reason for South Australian employers to review:

• psychosocial hazard risk assessments;
• WHS risk registers;
• bullying and harassment policies;
• sexual harassment prevention plans;
• workload and resourcing practices;
• consultation arrangements;
• employee reporting pathways;
• complaint-handling procedures;
• manager capability;
• workplace investigation processes; and
• systems for monitoring psychological health risks.

This review should examine actual work practices rather than relying only on policies.

For example, a workplace may have an appropriate respectful behaviour policy while still exposing employees to:

• chronic understaffing;
• unreasonable deadlines;
• unclear responsibilities;
• poor change management;
• regular exposure to aggressive clients;
• inconsistent management behaviour; or
• a reporting system that employees do not trust.

Psychosocial safety is not only about responding to individual complaints.

It requires the organisation to identify and control the workplace conditions capable of causing harm.

How to Use a Code of Practice

Codes of Practice are most useful when they are incorporated into the organisation’s normal risk management processes.

1. Identify Which Codes Apply

Review the current list of South Australian Approved Codes of Practice and identify those relevant to your:

• industry;
• work activities;
• equipment;
• work environment;
• workforce; and
• known hazards.

Not every WHS risk has its own Code. The absence of a specific Code does not remove the obligation to manage the risk.

2. Compare the Code with Actual Work Practices

Do not limit the review to existing policies and procedures.

Observe how work is actually performed and compare it with the control measures described in the Code.

Look for gaps between:

• the documented process;
• employee training;
• available equipment;
• supervisory expectations; and
• everyday workplace practices.

3. Use the Code to Review Risk Assessments

A Code provides a useful benchmark for testing whether your organisation has:

• identified all reasonably foreseeable hazards;
• consulted the right people;
• selected appropriate controls;
• applied the hierarchy of controls;
• provided suitable information and training; and
• established an effective review process.

4. Consult Workers

Workers often have the most detailed understanding of how a task is performed and where formal procedures do not reflect reality.

Consultation should occur when:

• identifying hazards;
• assessing risks;
• selecting controls;
• changing procedures;
• introducing new equipment; and
• reviewing whether controls are working.

Consultation is not simply asking employees to acknowledge a completed procedure.

Workers should have a genuine opportunity to contribute before decisions affecting their health and safety are finalised.

5. Document Any Departure

Where the organisation chooses an alternative to the approach recommended in a Code, record the decision and the supporting risk assessment.

The documentation should be clear enough that the organisation could later explain the decision to:

• an employee;
• a health and safety representative;
• a regulator;
• an investigator; or
• a court.

6. Keep Codes Under Review

Codes may be introduced, varied, replaced or supplemented by South Australian-specific addenda.

Build a regular legislative and compliance review into your WHS management system.

The review should confirm:

• which Codes currently apply;
• whether any Codes have changed;
• whether referenced Standards have been updated;
• whether risk assessments remain current; and
• whether workplace controls still reflect actual work.

Common Mistakes

Some of the most common mistakes businesses make include:

• downloading a Code but never applying it;
• relying on an interstate or national Model Code without checking its South Australian status;
• assuming a policy demonstrates compliance;
• failing to consult workers;
• using an outdated Code or Standard;
• departing from a Code without documenting why;
• treating the Code as the maximum required standard; and
• reviewing physical hazards while overlooking psychosocial risks.

A Code provides guidance, but the organisation remains responsible for determining what is reasonably practicable in its particular workplace.

How Capture Culture Can Help

Approved Codes of Practice provide practical guidance but applying them to a real workplace can still require careful analysis.

At Capture Culture, we help organisations translate WHS requirements into practical systems that reflect how their work is actually performed.

Our team can assist with:

• WHS compliance audits;
• Code of Practice gap assessments;
• psychosocial hazard reviews;
• WHS policies and procedures;
• risk registers and risk assessments;
• worker consultation processes;
• workplace inspections;
• manager and supervisor training; and
• practical implementation of corrective actions.

Approved Codes of Practice are one of the most valuable tools available to South Australian workplaces.

They do not remove the need for careful risk management, and they will not cover every hazard.

However, ignoring a relevant Codeor  filing it away without comparing it to your actual workplace practices can leave your organisation exposed when something goes wrong.

The important question is not simply:

“Do we have the relevant Code?”

It is:

“Can we demonstrate that our workplace practices meet or exceed the standard it describes?”

This article provides general information only and is not legal advice.