Health and Safety at Work Act 2015
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 1 — Title
1 Title This Act is the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
Section Sch1-1 — Interpretation
1 Interpretation In this schedule, former Acts means— (a) the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 ; and (b) the Machinery Act 1950 .
Section Sch1-10 — Transitional provision relating to health and safety medical practitioners
10 Transitional provision relating to health and safety medical practitioners (1) A person’s appointment as a health and safety medical practitioner under section 34 of the Health and Safety in…
Section Sch1-11 — Transitional provision relating to funding levy
11 Transitional provision relating to funding levy If, before the commencement of this clause, a person is liable to pay a levy under section 59 of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 and…
Section Sch1-12 — Transitional provision relating to employee participation systems
12 Transitional provision relating to employee participation systems An employee participation system developed, agreed, and implemented under section 19C of the Health and Safety in Employment Act…
Section Sch1-13 — Transitional provision relating to health and safety representatives
13 Transitional provision relating to health and safety representatives (1) This clause applies to a person who, immediately before the commencement of this clause, was a health and safety…
Section Sch1-14 — Transitional provision relating to training of health and safety representatives
14 Transitional provision relating to training of health and safety representatives (1) This clause applies if clause 12 of Schedule 2 commences during a year, being a period starting on 1 April in a…
Section Sch1-15 — Transitional provision relating to health and safety committees
15 Transitional provision relating to health and safety committees A health and safety committee established as part of an employee participation system under section 19C of the Health and Safety in…
Section Sch1-16 — Transitional provision relating to worker participation systems
16 Transitional provision relating to worker participation systems A worker participation system developed, agreed, and implemented under section 19R of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992…
Section Sch1-17 — Transitional provision relating to site health and safety representatives
17 Transitional provision relating to site health and safety representatives (1) This section applies to a person who, immediately before the commencement of this clause, was elected as a site health…
Section Sch1-18 — Transitional provision relating to site health and safety committees
18 Transitional provision relating to site health and safety committees (1) A site health and safety committee established as part of a worker participation system under section 19R of the Health and…
Section Sch1-19 — Transitional provision relating to industry health and safety representatives
19 Transitional provision relating to industry health and safety representatives (1) A person who, immediately before the commencement of this clause, was appointed as an industry health and safety…
Section Sch1-2 — Transitional provision relating to regulations made under former Acts and Factories Act 1946
2 Transitional provision relating to regulations made under former Acts and Factories Act 1946 (1) The following regulations made under the former Acts and the Factories Act 1946 are to be treated as…
Section Sch1-20 — Transitional provision relating to identity cards issued to industry health and safety representatives
20 Transitional provision relating to identity cards issued to industry health and safety representatives (1) This clause applies to an identity card given to an industry health and safety…
Section Sch1-21 — Transitional provision relating to register of industry health and safety representatives
21 Transitional provision relating to register of industry health and safety representatives (1) This clause applies to the register of industry health and safety representatives kept under section…
Section Sch1-22 — Continuation of New Zealand Mining Board of Examiners
22 Continuation of New Zealand Mining Board of Examiners (1) The New Zealand Mining Board of Examiners (the Board ) established under section 20D of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 is…
Section Sch1-23 — Savings of Board levy
23 Savings of Board levy If, before the commencement of this clause, a mine operator is liable to pay a levy under section 20H of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 and the levy remains…
Section Sch1-24 — Continuation of register of accidents and serious harm for transitional period
24 Continuation of register of accidents and serious harm for transitional period (1) This clause applies to a register of accidents and serious harm kept by an employer under section 25 of the…
Section Sch1-25 — Transitional provision relating to notices issued under Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992
25 Transitional provision relating to notices issued under Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 (1) This clause applies to an improvement notice, a prohibition notice, or a hazard notice issued…
Section Sch1-26 — Transitional provision for existing offences and contravention under former Acts
26 Transitional provision for existing offences and contravention under former Acts (1) This clause applies to an offence committed under, or a contravention of,— (a) the former Acts before the…
Section Sch1-3 — Transitional provision relating to Geothermal Energy Regulations 1961
3 Transitional provision relating to Geothermal Energy Regulations 1961 (1) The Geothermal Energy Regulations 1961 (SR 1961/124) made under the Geothermal Energy Act 1953 are to be treated as…
Section Sch1-4 — Transitional provision relating to approved codes of practice
4 Transitional provision relating to approved codes of practice An approved code of practice issued under section 20 of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 continues in force as if it had…
Section Sch1-5 — Transitional provision relating to exemptions granted from regulations under Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992
5 Transitional provision relating to exemptions granted from regulations under Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 (1) This clause applies to an exemption granted by WorkSafe under regulations…
Section Sch1-6 — Transitional provision relating to exemptions granted from regulations and instruments under Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996
6 Transitional provision relating to exemptions granted from regulations and instruments under Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 (1) This clause applies if— (a) an exemption from a…
Section Sch1-7 — Pre-commencement consultation relating to regulations, codes of practice, and safe work instruments
7 Pre-commencement consultation relating to regulations, codes of practice, and safe work instruments (1) Sections 202 , 215(4) , and 217(1) and (2) are satisfied in relation to any regulations if…
Section Sch1-8 — Re-incorporation of existing material incorporated by reference
8 Re-incorporation of existing material incorporated by reference (1) This clause applies to material ( existing material ) that, as at the commencement of this clause, is incorporated by reference…
Section Sch1-9 — Transitional provision relating to inspectors and enforcement officers
9 Transitional provision relating to inspectors and enforcement officers (1) A person who, immediately before the commencement of this clause, held office as an inspector, a geothermal inspector, or…
Section 2 — Commencement
2 Commencement (1) Subpart 4 of Part 5 comes into force on the day after the date on which this Act receives the Royal assent. (2) The rest of this Act comes into force on 4 April 2016.
Section Sch2-1 — Functions of health and safety representatives
1 Functions of health and safety representatives The functions of a health and safety representative for a work group are— (a) to represent the workers in the work group in matters relating to health…
Section Sch2-10 — Obligations of PCBU to health and safety representative
10 Obligations of PCBU to health and safety representative (1) Subject to clause 11 , the PCBU must— (a) consult, so far as is reasonably practicable, about health and safety matters with any health…
Section Sch2-11 — Exceptions to clauses 4(1) and 10(1)
11 Exceptions to clauses 4(1) and 10(1) (1) Despite clauses 4(1) and 10(1) , a PCBU— (a) must not allow a health and safety representative to have access to any personal information concerning a…
Section Sch2-12 — Requirement to allow health and safety representatives to attend certain training
12 Requirement to allow health and safety representatives to attend certain training (1) Subject to subclause (2), if a health and safety representative has been elected to represent workers who…
Section Sch2-13 — Functions and powers for health and safety purposes only
13 Functions and powers for health and safety purposes only A health and safety representative must not perform a function or exercise a power under this Act for a purpose other than a health and…
Section Sch2-14 — Information to be used by health and safety representative for health and safety purposes only
14 Information to be used by health and safety representative for health and safety purposes only (1) This section applies to any information obtained by a health and safety representative in the…
Section Sch2-15 — No duty on health and safety representative
15 No duty on health and safety representative Nothing in this Act imposes or is taken to impose a duty on a health and safety representative in that capacity. Compare: 1992 No 96 s 19X ; Model Work…
Section Sch2-16 — Immunity of health and safety representatives
16 Immunity of health and safety representatives A health and safety representative is protected from civil and criminal liability for any act done or omitted to be done— (a) in the performance or…
Section Sch2-17 — Regulator may remove health and safety representative
17 Regulator may remove health and safety representative (1) The regulator may, at its discretion, remove a health and safety representative from office if the regulator considers that the…
Section Sch2-18 — Appeal against removal from office
18 Appeal against removal from office (1) A health and safety representative may appeal to a District Court against a decision of the regulator to remove him or her from office. (2) An appeal must be…
Section Sch2-19 — PCBU may request regulator to exercise discretion to remove health and safety representative
19 PCBU may request regulator to exercise discretion to remove health and safety representative (1) A PCBU may,— (a) request the regulator to exercise its discretion under clause 17(1) to remove a…
Section Sch2-2 — Health and safety representative may attend interview
2 Health and safety representative may attend interview (1) With the consent of the worker concerned, a health and safety representative may attend an interview concerning work health and safety…
Section Sch2-20 — Functions of health and safety committee
20 Functions of health and safety committee The functions of a health and safety committee are— (a) to facilitate co-operation between the PCBU and workers in instigating, developing, and carrying…
Section Sch2-21 — Obligations of PCBU in relation to health and safety committees
21 Obligations of PCBU in relation to health and safety committees (1) The PCBU must— (a) consult, so far as is reasonably practicable, about health and safety matters with a health and safety…
Section Sch2-22 — Information to be used by health and safety committee for health and safety purposes only
22 Information to be used by health and safety committee for health and safety purposes only (1) This clause applies to any information obtained by a member of a health and safety committee in the…
Section Sch2-3 — Health and safety representative may enter and inspect workplace
3 Health and safety representative may enter and inspect workplace (1) A health and safety representative may, at any reasonable time, enter and inspect any area of a workplace to perform the…
Section Sch2-4 — Health and safety representative may request information
4 Health and safety representative may request information (1) A health and safety representative may request a PCBU to provide any information necessary to enable the health and safety…
Section Sch2-5 — Health and safety representative may be assisted by another person
5 Health and safety representative may be assisted by another person (1) A health and safety representative may, for the purposes of performing or exercising his or her functions or powers under this…
Section Sch2-6 — Health and safety representative in one work group may assist, or act in the capacity of, health and safety representative in another work group
6 Health and safety representative in one work group may assist, or act in the capacity of, health and safety representative in another work group (1) This clause sets out the circumstances in which…
Section Sch2-7 — Health and safety representative may accompany inspector
7 Health and safety representative may accompany inspector (1) A health and safety representative may accompany an inspector who has entered a workplace under section 168 . (2) An inspector may…
Section Sch2-8 — Health and safety representative may consult regulator or inspector
8 Health and safety representative may consult regulator or inspector A health and safety representative may consult the regulator or an inspector about any work health and safety issue. Compare:…
Section Sch2-9 — Functions and powers of health and safety representative generally limited to particular work group
9 Functions and powers of health and safety representative generally limited to particular work group (1) A health and safety representative for a work group may perform his or her functions and…