CSIRO has been selected by the federal workplace safety regulator Comcare to participate in their Psychosocial Inspection Program. Comcare selects participants based on data, trends and organisational risk profile.
The move comes as CSIRO Chief Executive Doug Hilton issued a health and safety warning for the organisation, citing a significant increase in workplace injuries and an alarming decline in the reporting of risks and hazards.
The purpose of the Psychosocial Inspection Program is to make sure that there are good systems in place to effectively manage the risks associated with psychosocial hazards such to ensure a psychologically safe workplace.
Psychosocial hazards can include workload demands, job insecurity, inadequate support, lack of role clarity, poor organisational change management, remote or isolated work, inadequate award recognition, as well as bullying and harassment including sexual harassment, to name a few.
As part of the program Comcare will engage with independent Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) to discuss how CSIRO’s safety systems operate in practice. Physical workplace inspections are expected to take place at Melbourne’s Clayton laboratory and Adelaide’s Waite campus.
All CSIRO employees have been invited to complete a Comcare survey about your experiences with CSIRO’s psychological health and safety management system.
The survey is anonymous, and results are collected and managed by Comcare. Results will be shared with the organisation at an overall level only, with no identifying information included.
The Staff Association encourages all members to complete this survey, which closes Friday 23 October 2026.
In an email to staff, Dr Hilton sounded the alarm on CSIRO workplace health and safety.
“Last financial year, our reported workplace injuries requiring medical treatment or lost time from work increased by 12 per cent, while our hazard reporting decreased by 24 per cent.”
“While a range of factors contribute to safety outcomes, these are concerning trends that highlight the importance of identifying and addressing risks before they result in harm,” Dr Hilton said.
As a result, Dr Hilton announced that it will now be a requirement for all staff to include Health Safety and Environment (HSE) Contacts as an objective in all Annual Performance Assessments (APAs).
However, many union members have contacted the Staff Association to raise their concerns about this decision being made without any consultation.
While the Staff Association recognises the importance of improving the safety culture at CSIRO, this cannot be achieved without genuine and meaningful consultation with workers, independent HSRs or the union.
As a result, the Staff Association initiated a consultation dispute with CSIRO Executive over their failure to consult with staff and the union on their decision to implement this new mandatory APA objective.
We have also asked that Executive undertake consultation with workers, HSRs and the Staff Association on how they can improve the organisation’s safety culture following the consultation provisions in both the CSIRO Enterprise Agreement (EA) and the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Cth).
Recent Culture Survey results clearly show that staff are seeking leadership that engages and consults with them, instead of relying on top-down decision-making.
Staff Association representatives subsequently met with CSIRO to stress the importance and legal obligation to consult and involve independent HSRs.
As a result, CSIRO made a commitment to meet and consult with HSRs to discuss the intention behind the APA HSE Contacts announcement.
The Staff Association is currently assessing the quality of this additional engagement with HSRs and staff at large before deciding whether to proceed further with the dispute.
For more information, email the union or speak to a Staff Association organiser or workplace delegate.