Quick Answer
A workplace compliance system only protects you if people use it. Many businesses buy one, sign it off and assume they are covered, then find years later that much of the workforce never completed the training or read the policies. Good compliance program implementation means making the system simple to use, giving managers ownership and checking completion regularly. This post is the fourth of the seven common workplace compliance mistakes. This is general information, not legal advice.
In this guide
I’ve never come across an ‘insurance policy’ for workplace compliance. That’s because the only protection is, in fact, having a well-run workplace compliance regime in place for your organisation, regardless of your size.
The blind spot for many Australian businesses
Some of Australia’s largest organisations implement highly sophisticated and expensive workplace compliance systems, only to find out years later that a large share of their workers are not completing the necessary workplace compliance training and policy requirements.
This is because the solution is complex to implement, difficult to understand and stressful to manage. The result is limited take up by managers and workers across the organisation.
The workplace compliance system is seen to be a hindrance, an imposition, something that you avoid at all costs!
Why does this happen?
It happens because a Chairman, Legal Counsel, CEO, Managing Director or senior manager signs off on a workplace compliance solution with the intent that their managers and workers will understand its importance from both a business risk and workplace culture point of view.
Unfortunately, this does not happen, and some years later, what they had thought was an ‘insurance policy’ is actually not because it has not been implemented appropriately!
When does ‘Murphy’s Law’ prevail?
As is now normal, at some point, there is a workplace incident that brings the business under the microscope in the eyes of the law.
A rogue employee that we probably should not have hired in the first place has done something unlawful. One of our workers fell victim to this unlawful act, and their managers and the executive are in question because, as it works out, the culprit was in fact, one of the workers who had not completed the necessary compliance training and policy requirements.
There is now a question of vicarious liability that will take up hours of wasted time in mediation and legal hearings and expose the business to damages and media attention that will damage the brand.
What’s worse is that people are hurt, your people get disengaged through the process, and ultimately, trust is broken.
How to Make Compliance Program Implementation Stick
The fix is rarely a better system. Good compliance program implementation is about making the one you have easy to use and hard to ignore.
- Keep it simple: short courses, one place for every policy, and access from any device, so completing a requirement takes minutes, not an afternoon.
- Build it into induction: new starters complete the core training and acknowledge key policies in their first weeks. Our article on why compliance training is necessary for new employees explains why this matters.
- Give managers ownership: each manager can see who in their team is overdue and is expected to follow it up.
- Automate the reminders: let the system send reminders and escalate overdue items, so nobody has to chase by hand.
- Report on it at the top: put completion and acknowledgement rates on the leadership agenda, so gaps are seen before an incident exposes them. For sexual harassment, the Australian Human Rights Commission’s positive duty guidance lists monitoring and evaluation among the standards it expects employers to meet.
For larger organisations bringing in a full governance, risk and compliance platform, see how to implement a GRC system.
As a good leader, it is important that we inspire our people to do the right thing, not just because they have to by law, but simply because they want to do the right thing by their colleagues. To treat them fairly and with respect.
A workplace compliance system to support you with this vision is a fundamental part of every business in the Australian business environment today. When people feel safe, they do their best work, and this is the golden rule for sustainable business in the digital age!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why do staff avoid using a workplace compliance system?
Usually because it feels like a hindrance: long courses, hard-to-find policies, confusing logins, or no sense that anyone checks. When a system is quick to use and managers follow up, avoidance drops.
2. Who should be accountable for compliance training completion?
HR or the compliance team usually runs the system, but each line manager should be accountable for their own team’s completion, and leadership should review the overall rates. Shared ownership is what keeps compliance program implementation on track after launch.
3. What should a business do if many staff have not completed compliance training?
Start with a report of who is overdue and on what. Prioritise the highest-risk areas, set a clear deadline, ask managers to follow up with their teams, and switch on automated reminders so the gap does not reopen.
Next in the series: Mistake #5: most businesses do not have processes for reporting workplace incidents.
This article is general information only and is not legal advice. Seek advice from a qualified professional for your situation.
