On a Queensland construction project that costs $250,000 or more, the principal contractor is the business that commissions the project, unless it engages another business as principal contractor and authorises it to manage the workplace. The principal contractor must prepare a written WHS management plan before work starts, put up signs, take all reasonable steps to obtain each safe work method statement (SWMS) before high risk work begins, and secure the site against unauthorised access so far as is reasonably practicable. The rules are in Chapter 6 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld).
Who is the principal contractor?
A construction project is a project involving construction work where the cost of the construction work is $250,000 or more (regulation 292). “Construction work” is defined broadly in regulation 289, and our guide to high risk construction work explains what counts. Regulation 293 then sets out who the principal contractor is:
- The default. A person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) that commissions a construction project is the principal contractor (regulation 293(1)). Our PCBU guide explains the term.
- An appointed principal contractor. If the commissioning PCBU engages another PCBU as principal contractor and authorises it to have management or control of the workplace and to carry out the principal contractor’s duties, the engaged PCBU is the principal contractor (regulation 293(2)).
- A home owner who hires a builder. If the owner of residential premises is an individual who directly or indirectly engages a PCBU for a construction project on the premises, the engaged PCBU is the principal contractor if it has management or control of the workplace (regulation 293(3)).
- Only one at a time. A construction project has only one principal contractor at any specific time (regulation 293(4)).
A project under $250,000 has no principal contractor under Chapter 6, but other duties still apply: every PCBU must manage the risks of construction work (regulation 297), the person with management or control of the workplace must secure it from unauthorised access so far as is reasonably practicable (regulation 298), and a PCBU doing high risk construction work still needs a SWMS (regulation 299), whatever the project costs. Queensland has no approved code of practice covering construction work as a whole, and Safe Work Australia’s model Construction Work code isn’t a Queensland approved code. Queensland does approve codes on particular construction topics, such as excavation work, scaffolding and managing the risk of falls. A code of practice is guidance, not law, but a court can rely on it (section 275 of the Act).
What the commissioning business must do first
Before the principal contractor starts, the business that commissions the work has duties too. It must, so far as is reasonably practicable, consult the designer about eliminating or minimising risks arising from the design during construction (regulation 294). If it didn’t commission the design, it must take all reasonable steps to obtain the designer’s written safety report (regulation 295(2)). If it engages a principal contractor, it must give that contractor any information it has about hazards and risks at or near the workplace (regulation 296).
The principal contractor’s duties at a glance
| Duty | Regulation | Maximum penalty (penalty units) |
|---|---|---|
| Prepare a written WHS management plan before work on the project starts | 309 | 60 |
| Make sure each person who will do construction work is aware of the plan, and of their right to inspect it, before they start (so far as is reasonably practicable) | 310 | 36 |
| Review and revise the plan, and tell people about revisions | 311 | 36 |
| Keep a copy of the plan until the project is completed (at least 2 years after a notifiable incident), readily accessible to anyone who will do construction work on the project and available for inspection | 313 | 60 for a body corporate or 12½ for an individual (keeping and inspection); 36 (accessibility) |
| Install signs with the principal contractor’s name, phone numbers (including after hours) and site office location (if there is one), visible from outside the workplace or work area | 308 | 36 |
| Take all reasonable steps to obtain a copy of each SWMS before high risk construction work commences | 312 | 36 |
| Secure the workplace from unauthorised access, so far as is reasonably practicable (a duty of the person with management or control, which includes the principal contractor) | 298 | 36 |
| Put arrangements in place for compliance with listed workplace rules | 314 | 60 |
These are the maximum penalties for the regulation offences themselves.
The WHS management plan
The plan is the project-level document, not the same thing as a business-wide system (see our guide to a WHS management system). Regulation 309(2) says it must include:
- the names, positions and health and safety responsibilities of everyone at the workplace whose role involves specific responsibilities for the project;
- the arrangements between the businesses on site for consultation, cooperation and coordination (see also section 46 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld));
- the arrangements for managing work health and safety incidents;
- any site-specific safety rules and how everyone at the workplace will be told about them;
- the arrangements for collecting, assessing, monitoring and reviewing SWMS on site.
A SWMS for high risk work on the project must take the plan into account (regulation 299(3)(a)(ii)). Our site safety management plan is a ready-made starting point for these headings.
SWMS: who gives what to whom
Every PCBU that carries out high risk construction work must make sure a SWMS is prepared before that work starts (regulation 299). A PCBU doing high risk work in connection with a construction project must also give a copy to the principal contractor before the work starts (regulation 301). The principal contractor, for its part, must take all reasonable steps to obtain a copy of the SWMS before the high risk work commences (regulation 312). Many principal contractors go further than the minimum and set a rule in the WHS management plan: no SWMS in, no start. Our guides to what a SWMS is and how often to review one cover the detail.
Site security, amenities, materials and falling objects
- Security. The person with management or control of a workplace where construction work is carried out must secure it from unauthorised access, so far as is reasonably practicable (regulation 298). They must consider the risks from unauthorised access and how likely it is, for example how close the site is to places children frequent, such as schools, parks and shopping precincts, and how to isolate hazards if access can’t be prevented. See our top tips for construction site security.
- Specific risks. The principal contractor must manage the risks from storing, moving and disposing of construction materials and waste, stored plant that isn’t in use, traffic near the workplace affected by the work, and essential services (regulation 315).
- Compliance arrangements. The principal contractor must put arrangements in place for compliance at the workplace with the Regulation’s rules on facilities, first aid, emergency plans, personal protective equipment, airborne contaminants, hazardous atmospheres, flammable storage, falling objects and falls (regulation 314).
- Amenities. Schedule 5A sets particular amenity duties, including an adequate supply of clean, cool drinking water (schedule 5A, section 7), and regulation 315A requires amenities to be kept hygienic, safe and serviceable.
- Falling objects. Regulations 315B to 315M set rules for work where an object could fall on people, most of them duties on the principal contractor: hoardings, gantries, catch platforms, screening or closing an adjoining area. Closing an area needs written approval from whoever controls it, such as a local government (regulation 315M). Get advice, because the measures depend on the type of work and, for construction work other than civil and housing construction work, on a measured angle (regulation 315F).
General construction induction (“white card”) checks
Under regulation 316, a PCBU must make sure general construction induction training is provided to a worker it engages to do construction work if the worker hasn’t completed it, or completed it more than 2 years ago and hasn’t done construction work in the previous 2 years. Under regulation 317, a PCBU must not direct or allow a worker to do construction work unless that training is done, and must make sure the worker holds the general construction induction training card or, if they’ve applied but not yet been issued one, a certification issued in the previous 60 days. Regulation 316 applies to the workers a PCBU engages, and regulation 317 applies to any worker the PCBU directs or allows to do construction work. Because “worker” includes a contractor, a subcontractor and a subcontractor’s employees (section 7(1) of the Act), a principal contractor shouldn’t simply assume a subcontractor has done it. Part 6.4 (regulations 307 to 315M), which sets the principal contractor’s extra duties, doesn’t add a separate card-checking duty, but many principal contractors check cards at the gate as a site rule, and the WHS management plan is the place to record it.
What subcontractors need to do
A subcontractor is a PCBU with its own duties. On a construction project it should read the WHS management plan before starting (the principal contractor must make it aware of the plan, regulation 310), give the principal contractor a copy of each SWMS for high risk work (regulation 301), and consult, cooperate and coordinate with the other businesses on site (section 46 of the Act). Our guides on who is responsible for safety on a construction site and working alongside contractors cover how the roles fit together.
Templates to get organised
The general construction SWMS bundle covers the SWMS side of a project. Our free SWMS template is a good way to see the content regulation 299 expects, and the site safety audit checklist helps you check the site against your plan.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Check the current law or talk to WorkSafe Queensland for your situation.
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