When do employers have to notify their insurer about their RRTWC details?

From 1 July 2020, employers must provide their insurer with RRTWC details within 12 months after the appointment of the RRTWC.

For existing RRTWCs that were appointed before 1 July 2020, employers will have until 30 June 2021 to provide their insurer with their RRTWC’s details.

This allows enough time for employers to prepare and submit the required details to their insurer at the same time as their usual annual premium declarations.

What details do employers need to report to their insurer?

Employers will be required to provide their insurer with details of all appointed RRTWCs’ names, contact details, the workplaces they have responsibility for and a statement about how the person is considered to be appropriately qualified.

What if an employer already has a RRTWC?

Employers who currently have an appointed RRTWC will be required to provide their insurer with their details by 30 June 2021. This will allow enough time for employers to prepare and submit to their insurer at the same time as their annual premium declarations.

Your insurer will make contact with you to obtain this information together with your annual wages declaration.

What qualifications are required for RRTWCs under the new provisions?

An employer already must ensure the RRTWC is appropriately qualified to perform the functions of the role.

The new requirements do not change this, but completing an Office of Industrial Relations (OIR)-approved training course becomes one way an employer can demonstrate the RRTWC is appropriately qualified.

The new requirements allow OIR to approve training courses or qualifications for RRTWCs relevant to the industry of the employer. If a training course is approved and the RRTWC has completed that course, then a statement that the RRTWC has successfully completed the approved training would demonstrate the RRTWC is appropriately qualified.

If an employer has not currently ensured their RRTWC is appropriately qualified, they are already contravening their existing obligations.

Is attendance at an OIR-approved training course the only way to achieve ‘appropriate’ RRTWC qualifications?

No. Completing an OIR-approved training course is just one way an employer can demonstrate the RRTWC is appropriately qualified.

If there is no relevant approved training course, or the RRTWC has not completed an approved training course, the employer would need to demonstrate how the RRTWC is appropriately qualified (for example, a statement about their experience and competencies and how they are relevant to the workplaces that the coordinator has responsibility for).

OIR is developing guidance on how these provisions will operate and what qualifications and experience will be considered appropriate to demonstrate the RRTWC is appropriately qualified.

Will existing RRTWCs need to do any additional training?

No, unless the employer is not satisfied the qualifications, skills and experience of their appointed RRTWC make them appropriately qualified to fulfil the functions of a RRTWC. Guidance material will be issued providing more information about what qualifications, skills and experience will be considered appropriate.

How will OIR assess and approve training courses?

The new requirements are designed to be flexible by encouraging industry-specific, market-led proposals for RRTWC training to be developed.

Further guidance material setting out minimum course criteria requirements will be made available on the WorkSafe website.

How will the unpaid intern amendments affect workers’ compensation premiums?

Employers will be required to notify WorkCover Queensland of the use of unpaid interns through their wages declaration from 1 July 2020. Contact WorkCover Queensland to discuss any questions in relation to premium calculation.

When will the unpaid intern compensation entitlements amendment come into effect?

The extended workers’ compensation entitlements to unpaid interns commence on 1 July 2020.

Who will not be considered an unpaid intern under the new provisions?

The following will not be considered to be unpaid interns under the new requirements:

• Paid interns (they will generally already be covered by the scheme as a worker).
• Any person who is:
  • a volunteer with a non-profit organisation or a religious, charitable or benevolent organisation
  • a student on work experience or vocational placement.
• A person providing unpaid assistance as a favour.

What support services will be considered reasonable for an insurer to provide?

Insurers are required to take all reasonable steps to provide appropriate and reasonable services to support workers during the claim determination period.

Support services that may be available while the application is being determined include:

• general practitioner appointments
• counselling or psychology sessions
• psychiatry appointments
• psychotropic medication
• mediation services
• costs associated with attendance at a hospital emergency department or treatment (outpatient only).

For medical treatment costs, refer to the relevant table of costs when considering what is reasonable.

Will the new provisions allow workers to access intervention services they would not otherwise be entitled to?

To be able to access the support services, a worker will be required to make a valid application for compensation.

To be a valid application, a worker must enclose a certificate from a doctor diagnosing them with a medically recognised psychiatric or psychological injury.

Can an apology or expression of regret be taken into account in civil proceedings?

Under the new requirements, making an apology or expression of regret will not constitute an express or implied admission of fault or liability by the person in relation to the matter and they will be inadmissible in any civil proceedings. The new requirements are consistent with the Civil Liability Act 2003.

The positive impact of an apology is supported by research which suggests apologies have a strong role in resolving disputes and providing a mechanism for achieving justice between parties. The benefits of the exemption in the workers’ compensation space are anticipated to be reduced claim, common law and dispute resolution costs, as well as less adversarial approaches to the resolution of claims.

Can apologies and expressions of regret be used in criminal proceedings?

The new requirements do not prevent apologies or expressions of regret from being admitted as evidence in criminal prosecutions. For example, apologies or expressions of regret may be admissible in the prosecution of industrial manslaughter offences where a worker dies as a result of the person conducting a business or undertaking’s actions or negligence.

Further guidance and information will be communicated in relation to these new provisions.

When will the apologies and expressions of regret amendment take effect?

Expressions of regret and apologies provided by employers following workplace injuries are now exempt from being considered in a common law claim.

Any expression of regret or apology made prior to 30 October 2019 will be inadmissible if a relevant notice of claim for damages is made after 30 October 2019.