If your business has fewer than 20 workers, the HSWA Amendment Bill proposes changes to what the law expects of you. The short version: your obligations would be focused on the risks that could actually kill or seriously harm someone. The long version is worth reading.
What is a "small PCBU"?
The Bill proposes a new legal category: the small PCBU. A small PCBU would be any person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) that has fewer than 20 workers for at least nine of the twelve months in a year.
"Workers" includes employees, contractors, subcontractors, and anyone else who carries out work for your business. If you have 8 employees and regularly use 15 subcontractors, you may not qualify as a small PCBU — the total worker count matters. The exact methodology for counting workers may be further clarified as the Bill progresses.
What the Bill proposes for small PCBUs
Under the current Act, every PCBU — regardless of size — has the same broad duty to eliminate or minimise all risks so far as is reasonably practicable. That's a wide obligation.
Under the proposed changes, small PCBUs would have their primary duties under sections 36–43 of the Act focused on critical risks. They would also be required to provide basic worker welfare facilities — first aid provisions, emergency plans, drinking water, appropriate lighting, ventilation, and sanitary facilities.
Small PCBUs would also still be subject to relevant regulations in relation to critical risks, including requirements around information, training, supervision, and PPE.
What wouldn't change
A few things to be clear about:
You still couldn't be reckless or negligent. If someone gets hurt because you ignored an obvious risk — even one that falls outside the "critical risk" definition — you could still face enforcement action. The proposed changes would narrow your proactive obligations, not remove your accountability.
Workers' rights wouldn't change. Your workers would still have the right to refuse unsafe work, the right to be consulted on health and safety matters, and the right to a healthy and safe workplace.
If you grow past 20 workers, the full duties would apply. The small PCBU category is based on your actual worker count. If you scale up, your obligations scale up with you.
Contractual obligations may still apply. Many clients, especially in construction and infrastructure, require their contractors to maintain health and safety standards that exceed the legal minimum. Pre-qualification schemes like Tōtika, SiteWise, and IMPAC set their own standards regardless of what the Act requires.
What are your critical risks?
This is the key question. Under the proposed changes, you would need to:
Check the proposed Schedule 1A. This is the new schedule listing hazards that would be automatically classified as critical risks. If your workers are exposed to any of these hazards — working at height, confined spaces, hazardous substances, mobile plant, energised electrical work, and others — those are your critical risks by law.
Consider other serious hazards. Schedule 1A covers the most common high-consequence hazards, but it's not exhaustive. Any hazard in your workplace that could cause death, serious injury, serious illness, or a notifiable incident could be treated as a critical risk — even if it's not on the Schedule 1A list.
Document what you find. Write it down. What are the critical risks in your business? What controls are in place? How do your workers verify those controls before starting high-risk work?
→ Read the full Schedule 1A list
What should you do now?
The Bill has not yet been enacted. But that doesn't mean you should wait. The critical risk categories in Schedule 1A are not new — they're the hazards that have always caused the most harm in New Zealand workplaces. Managing them properly is already good practice. Here's where to start:
Know your critical risks. Walk through your operations and identify which Schedule 1A hazards apply to your business. Most PCBUs have at least two or three.
Check your controls. For each critical risk, confirm that the right controls are in place. Are workers trained? Is equipment maintained? Are procedures being followed?
Verify before work starts. Critical risk verification means confirming — before work begins — that the controls are actually in place. Not assumed. Not hoped for. Verified and recorded.
Keep records. If an incident happens and WorkSafe investigates, the first thing they'll look for is evidence that you were managing your critical risks. A signed, timestamped verification record is that evidence.
Train your workers. Make sure everyone who does high-risk work understands what the critical risks are and what controls need to be in place. Write it down, make sure everyone knows.
Training records. If your workers need specific training or certifications for the work they do (working at height, operating plant, handling hazardous substances), keep records. Expired tickets are a common finding in workplace investigations.
How ThinkSafe helps
ThinkSafe gives you everything you need in one membership — no matter the size of your business.
The mobile app covers 97 forms across 90+ industries, including hazard reporting, incident reporting, inspections, toolbox talks, and critical risk verification. Every membership includes a health and safety management system with plans, policies, risk registers, and emergency procedures — ready to go from day one.
You also get access to HASANZ-registered safety professionals for advisory support, pre-qualification assistance, and incident response. If you're not sure whether something is a critical risk, you can ask someone who knows.
Critical risk verification is built into the app. Your workers verify that controls are in place before starting high-risk work, and every verification is timestamped, signed, and stored. It's the clearest way to demonstrate you're meeting your duty under the amended Act.
Memberships start at $650 per year for 1–2 users. No lock-in contracts. 14-day free trial with full access.
