Health and safety committee checker

Check whether you must set up a health and safety committee, by when, who has to be on it and how often it meets, under the WHS Act or Victoria’s OHS Act.

Figures checked 5 November 2026. Free to use, no sign-in.

Victoria and Western Australia have their own Acts; the tool switches to them.

Does the workplace already have a health and safety committee?

Your answer

Do you need a health and safety committee?

Yes: set one up within 2 months

Because 5 or more workers asked for one, the PCBU must set up a committee within 2 months of the request (s 75 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW)).

Membership

  • At least half the members must be workers who were not nominated by the PCBU.
  • A health and safety representative for the workplace who agrees to join is automatically a member.
  • Membership is otherwise agreed between the PCBU and workers.

Meetings

  • At least once every 3 months, and at any reasonable time when at least half the members ask.

What it does

  • Help the business and workers work together to develop and carry out health and safety measures.
  • Help develop the health and safety rules and procedures for the workplace.
  • Members must be given reasonable paid time for meetings and committee work, and access to WHS information (not personal or medical information without consent) (s 79).

Source: ss 75–79 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW).

  • These rules are the same across the harmonised states and territories, WA and the Comcare scheme, with WA adding one membership rule.
  • A committee does not replace your duty to consult workers and their representatives on health and safety matters.

General information, not legal advice.

How this works

Harmonised states and territories, WA and Comcare: s 75 of the WHS Act requires a committee within 2 months of a request by a health and safety representative or by 5 or more workers, or where the regulations require one. Sections 76 to 79 set the membership, functions, meetings and the business’s duties to members. WA’s Act adds a rule that at least one member represents the business.

Victoria: s 72 of the OHS Act 2004 requires a committee within 3 months of a request by a health and safety representative. A request from employees alone does not trigger it.

Unsure answers never produce a “must” result. They tell you what to confirm.

Legal basis

Checked against these sources on 5 November 2026. Spotted a figure that looks wrong? Tell us.

Questions

Is a health and safety committee compulsory?

Only once it is triggered. Under the model WHS Act a PCBU must set one up within 2 months of a request from a health and safety representative or from 5 or more workers, or where the regulations require one. In Victoria the employer has 3 months from a request by a health and safety representative.

Who sits on the committee?

At least half the members must be workers the business did not nominate (in Victoria, employees, preferably health and safety representatives). A health and safety representative who agrees to join is a member. The rest is agreed between the business and workers.

How often does it have to meet?

At least once every 3 months, and whenever at least half the members ask for a meeting at a reasonable time.

Is a committee the same as a health and safety representative?

No. A health and safety representative is elected by a work group and has individual powers, such as issuing provisional improvement notices in some circumstances. A committee is a joint forum for developing safety measures and procedures. A workplace can have both.

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