What Incidents Should Be Reported At The Workplace

Asking what incidents should be reported at the workplace usually produces a list. The more useful answer is that the worker should not be the one deciding.

Every threshold a worker applies is a judgement made quickly, under pressure, by someone who does not have the full picture. Set it high and you lose the near misses, the psychosocial incidents and the first aid events, which are exactly the categories that predict the serious ones.

The workable instruction is broad. Report anything that caused harm, could have caused harm, or that you would not want to see happen again. If in doubt, report it.

Triage happens afterwards, by someone whose job it is. An over-reported system is a manageable problem. An under-reported one is invisible.

Safe Work Australia sets out notifiable incidents separately. This is general information rather than legal advice, and obligations vary by state and territory.

See Sentrient’s incident reporting software and work health and safety course.