Workplace health and safety, or WHS, is the practice of ensuring health and safety systems are in place within an organisation. WHS exists to keep all workers safe. A workplace health and safety career is a very rewarding one, with job opportunities in every industry, and a huge increase in job demand and security thanks to COVID-19. The demand for WHS jobs or Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) jobs in Australia has steadily increased in recent years, making now the perfect time to start your career in this growing sector.
There are a variety of skills needed to have a successful career in a WHS role. Having close attention to detail is important, as professionals need to be able to identify and assess risks big and small. Being able to critically think and continuously question what you can do to improve a workplace and the well-being of workers is paramount. The ability to communicate clearly and instruct workers is also crucial, given WHS professionals must interact with members at all levels of an organisation and must be able to articulate and convey important information. Empathy has a large part in workplace health and safety jobs, as you’ll need to have an understanding of working in different roles and risks that employees may encounter. This also includes the very important psychological work health safety and the role mental health plays in keeping everyone safe.
Manages a business’s WHS requirements. This role ensures the workplace complies with all relevant WHS laws and requires a higher level of technical knowledge than a Health and Safety Advisor.
Advises management on any workplace health and safety issues that may arise and either existing or potential future risks. This role identifies, manages, trains staff and communicates on how to improve safety standards.
Implements and improves safety systems within an organisation. This role identifies risks and hazards and puts the processes and controls in place to remove, mitigate or reduce those risks to employees.
Ensures all WHS guidelines are followed and responsible for providing operational assistance and advice to the business regarding the day-to-day management of WHS risks. This role may work under a Health and Safety Manager.
Manages a business’s WHS requirements. This role ensures the workplace complies with all relevant WHS laws and requires a higher level of technical knowledge than a Health and Safety Advisor.
Advises management on any workplace health and safety issues that may arise and either existing or potential future risks. This role identifies, manages, trains staff and communicates on how to improve safety standards.
Implements and improves safety systems within an organisation. This role identifies risks and hazards and puts the processes and controls in place to remove, mitigate or reduce those risks to employees.
Ensures all WHS guidelines are followed and responsible for providing operational assistance and advice to the business regarding the day-to-day management of WHS risks. This role may work under a Health and Safety Manager.
A job in work health and safety is a job that changes every day. Professionals working in WHS roles have various responsibilities including proactively identifying daily risks, implementing ongoing systems for recurring risks, ensuring compliance within industry standards, managing employees returning to work after an injury and managing the overall wellbeing of staff in the workplace.
Safety roles allow ‘out of office’ freedom as you can visit different sites, research new methods, or go to learning seminars to further develop your skills and knowledge. Because new technologies and methods are being invented all the time, WHS is an area where you can keep learning on the job and understand how to introduce new safety methods, skills, systems and technologies.
In 2007, a total of 310 Australians lost their lives at work, yet by 2018, that figure was 146. When allowing for an increase in workforce numbers over that period, the death rate was reduced by two thirds, from 3 deaths per 100,000 workers to just 1.21 deaths.1
Governments are committed to continuously improving occupational health and safety, given that work-related injury and disease costs the economy $62 billion annually or an average cost of $117,000 per claim.1
In 2018-2019, WHS authorities across Australia undertook:
Workplace safety isn’t just about physical wellbeing anymore but also psychological. The correlation between workplace accidents and increased levels of stress or poor mental health is clear, which is why the recent shift in focusing on workplace mental wellbeing is so important. It has been estimated that workplace stress affects around 32% of all Australians, and this has a detrimental effect on workplace performance.2
WHS laws around ‘gig workers’ in the increased shift to a gig economy must be assessed. Before the rapid growth in the gig economy sector, independent contractors were usually responsible for their own insurances however the rapid growth has highlighted the current lack of industry regulation in this area.2
1Safework Australia 2Prochoice.com.au
A career in Work Health Safety is known to be rewarding, challenging, and comes with a great salary. Given the nature of this career, it is essential to have the right qualifications to ensure you have the latest compliance knowledge and skills to successfully operate within your WHS role. Develop key occupational health and safety skills and strengthen your ability to make informed decisions, preparing you to take on leading WHS roles within any organisation.
Develop a basic understanding of occupational health and safety law, and how to navigate the technical aspects related to WHS processes within any organisation. Learn how to best contribute to WHS decisions, supporting their implementation and influencing change within your organisation.
100% Online Learning
Approx 10-12 months part-time
Approx 8 months full-time
Safety Officer$69,000
Work Health Safety Coordinator$72,000
Health Safety Advisor$85,000
Develop key occupational health and safety skills and strengthen your ability to make informed decisions, preparing you to take on leading WHS roles within any organisation. Consolidate and develop your skills around risk analysis and incident response while increasing your ability to lead WHS practices.
100% Online Learning
Approx 12-14 months part-time
Approx 12 months full-time
Work Health Safety Coordinator$72,000
Health Safety Advisor$85,000
Health and Safety Manager$117,000
Our Real Outcomes Guarantee is our commitment to you and your career goals, ensuring that your studies will give you real-world benefits.
Our team, assessments and feedback are all focused on helping you in your career, not just completing your course. As the only RTO offering this, our guarantee is part of our ongoing work to go beyond just a piece of paper.
Studying the diploma… gave me the confidence to change careers… having that formal qualification backing up my experiences in the project space already.
It’s something that really made me more employable.
We support you beyond achieving your qualifications – we want to help you be as prepared as possible for taking the next step in your career. Our Careers Hub gives you complimentary and exclusive access to resources and personalised advice from our in-house Career Coach.
My experience with Jenni the career counsellor was exceptional…The feedback was so helpful. She was encouraging too, and made me feel more sure about how to ‘sell myself’ to the target employers. I am very impressed with CAL’s careers hub – many resources that I will use. Thank you very much for your help.
– Samantha M.
Every member of our team is here to support you beyond achieving your qualifications. We want you to be as prepared as possible for taking the next step in your career. As a CAL student you’ll gain access to our Careers Hub through our online learning hub ‘Spark’.
