Well over 100 years ago, workplaces introduced first aiders to treat immediate physical injuries. Then in the 1980s, Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) were introduced into legislation to give workers a voice and improve physical safety outcomes. Today, we are now seeing the emergence of Mental Health First Aiders supporting peers through mental health conversations.
But what does “good” actually look like?
What is a legislative requirement, what is simply good practice, and are any of these roles truly effective at preventing and protecting workers from psychosocial hazards?
In my recent experience auditing psychosocial risk, one of the strongest positive protective factors I observed was the clear onsite presence of a full-time Human Resources Advisor. Yep — HR has been around forever (once jokingly known as “hire and retrench”), now more commonly re-badged as People and Culture. But what makes good HR professionals valuable is that they often work on both sides of the bowtie — helping prevent issues through systems, support, leadership guidance and early intervention, while also helping manage and support workers if an issues arises or an incident occurs.
I’m also going to add another emerging support role you may not have heard much about — the Safety Coach. These professionals work directly with leaders on how to talk with workers, listen properly, engage respectfully, and create psychologically safer interactions onsite. In my recent field experience, the feedback around these roles has been very positive — another strong protective factor in practice.
Back to my answer around what is legislative requirement, below is a quick summary:
| Role / Initiative | Legislative Requirement | Purpose in Practice |
| First Aiders | ✔ Yes
(WHS Reg r. 42) |
Immediate response to physical injury or medical emergencies. |
| Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) | ✔ Yes (if requested by workers)
(WHS Act s. 51) |
Worker consultation, representation, and raising WHS concerns. |
| Mental Health First Aiders (MHFA) | ✘ No | Peer support, early conversations, and referral to professional help. |
| Human Resources / People & Culture | ✘ No | Support leadership, worker relations, systems, investigations, and recovery processes. |
| Performance/Safety Coaches | ✘ No | Coach leaders on communication, engagement, listening, and safety culture. |
As psychosocial risk management continues to evolve, organisations are increasingly recognising that healthy workplaces are not created by one role, one training course, or one wellbeing initiative. What I am increasingly seeing in practice is that just because an organisation may be compliant, it does not necessarily mean the system is mature — or that psychosocial hazards are actually being minimised in practice. It takes leadership, systems, good work design, consultation, support structures, and mature organisational capability working together in practice.
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