Queensland reforms worker safety agency
Sydney (14 May)
The Queensland Government will increase Ministerial oversight of Resources Health and Safety Queensland (RSHQ) – the state’s mine safety regulator – under legislation passed on 13 May, in a bid to strengthen the agency’s integrity.
RSHQ is Queensland’s primary resource sector safety regulator. It has a range of responsibilities, which include investigating safety accidents, issuing safety directives and advice, and monitoring health trends.
Queensland’s government plans to abolish the RSHQ Commissioner and transfer their authority to a Minister-appointed Governing Board to improve accountability.
“We will now establish an independent, skills-based Governing Board to strengthen oversight, streamline advisory structures, and remove duplication,” Queensland Natural Resources Minister Dale Last said on 14 April.
The Government also plans to increase the power of mixed corporate-labour-technical committees over the agency, it said.
“At every coalmine I go to, I hear concerns about how [RSHQ] is not proactive, does not apply the risk focus appropriately, and needs to work with industry to deliver the outcomes of improved safety,” Bryson Head, the Liberal National Party’s (LNP) representative from Callide, said on 13 May, during the Parliamentary debate.
The Mining and Energy Union (MEU) opposes the Government’s changes to the RSHQ.
“The MEU [Queensland] has serious concerns regarding aspects of the proposal, particularly the removal of the independent Commissioner role,” MEU’s Queensland District President, Mitch Hughes, told Lithos today.
“The union’s position… is that Queensland’s mine safety framework should remain strongly independent, transparent and tripartite, ensuring workers, industry, and government all have a purposeful role in the system,” Hughes said.
In 2025, a review into RSHQ found that the agency’s Commissioner should be retained with a more clearly defined mandate. “There is insufficient clarity regarding the role of Commissioner … and how [they] interact with RSHQ,” according to the review.
The review also recommended that the state’s Resources Minister appoint a Governing Board to oversee RSHQ. It described the agency’s current model as intrinsically flawed and unable to provide adequate oversight and accountability.
Queensland Greens representative, Michael Berkman, opposed the Government’s selective adoption of review recommendations.
“This bill takes some steps towards implementing recommendations from the review of the Queensland Resources Safety and Health Regulatory Model. However … this is really a cynical way of introducing quite far-reaching administrative changes,” Berkman told Parliament.
The Queensland Resources Council (QRC) – a mining industry group – has backed the plan. “The reforms are an important first step towards a modern, well-functioning regulator and improving confidence in Queensland’s resources safety framework,” QRC Chief Executive Officer Janette Hewson said.
Labor Party, Greens Party, and Katter’s Australian Party representatives opposed the reform legislation. The LNP passed it without any opposition support.
By Avinash Govind