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Published on June 26, 2026

Psychosocial hazards: What NSW’s 1 July 2026 code of practice change means for employers

At a glance:

The legal status of NSW codes is changing: From 1 July 2026, section 26A of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) means businesses must follow an approved Code of Practice or prove they’re managing the risk to an equal or higher standard of safety.
Guidance becomes a benchmark: The Code of Practice on managing psychosocial hazards shifts from helpful guidance to an enforceable standard a regulator can measure you against. Your underlying duties don’t change. The standard of proof does.
The risks are real, and rising: Mental health conditions made up 12% of serious workers’ compensation claims in 2023–24, up more than 14% on the year before, and SafeWork NSW has appointed inspectors dedicated to psychosocial safety.
Preparation is practical, not overwhelming: Map your hazards to the code, apply the hierarchy of controls, consult your people and document your reviews. You don’t have to do everything at once, but you do need to show your work.

If you’ve been treating the psychosocial hazards code as ‘recommended reading’ rather than a compliance line, that will need to change on 1 July when regulations change.

Here’s everything you need to know, whether you’re a leader in New South Wales (NSW) or elsewhere.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article and on this website is general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Although all efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy and currency of the information presented, Sonder takes no responsibility for any errors or omissions presented. Please contact a legal representative for individual advice.

What’s changing on 1 July 2026?

The change comes from the Industrial Relations and Other Legislation Amendment (Workplace Protections) Act 2025, which introduced section 26A of the NSW WHS Act. From 1 July 2026, Codes of Practice will no longer operate as guidance. As a result of this change, Businesses must either:

Comply with the relevant Code of Practice, or
Manage the hazard to an equivalent or higher standard, and be able to evidence it.

NSW has more than 30 approved codes, and they all gain this legally enforceable status at once. The Code of Practice on managing psychosocial hazards is one of the most significant, because it touches every workplace with people in it.

Until now, a code has been admissible guidance. After 1 July, it becomes a legally enforceable standard and therefore a legal duty. Depart from it, and the onus is on you to document why your alternative is as good or better. This brings NSW into line with Queensland. It doesn’t create new duties, since your obligation to manage psychosocial risk already exists, but it raises the bar on how you prove you’re meeting it.

“Boards and executives are now expected to evidence oversight, not just intent.”

Kristen Raison, Co-founder of Humn, from our 2026 executive briefing

A wellbeing calendar and a policy on file were never the same as managing risk. But now the gap between the two is easier for a regulator to see.

A timeline to show the evolution of the psychosocial hazards Codes of Practice in NSW

Why psychosocial hazards are in the spotlight

First, a couple of definitions, because the terms can get confused.

Psychosocial hazards are the workplace factors that can harm someone’s mental health: high job demands, low role clarity, poor support, bullying and harassment, badly managed change.
That’s different from psychological safety, which is how safe people feel to speak up. The code is about the conditions you design, not just the culture people feel.

The statistics help explain the focus. Safe Work Australia data shows mental health conditions made up 12% of serious workers’ compensation claims in 2023–24, up more than 14% on the year before, with bullying and harassment, work pressure and exposure to workplace violence the leading causes.

“Psychosocial safety has moved from a wellbeing conversation to core business risk. Mental health now sits alongside slips, trips and falls.”

Kristen Raison, Co-founder of Humn

In our guide to psychological safety in an age of AI, Sonder analysed 9,183 psychosocial hazards tagged across support cases between May 2025 and May 2026. Nearly two-thirds fell into just three categories: job demands (23%), poor workplace relationships or conflict (21%) and poor support (20%).

“Nearly two-thirds of psychosocial hazard tags in Sonder support cases over the past year fell into just three categories: job demands, poor support, and workplace conflict.”

Ingrid Jenkins, Chief People Officer, Sonder

These are exactly the factors the code asks you to identify and control. If you’re not sure where your psychosocial risk sits, it’s a sound place to start.

What a SafeWork NSW inspector will expect to see

After 1 July, an inspector will look for evidence that you’ve worked to the code. In practice, that means:

Controls mapped to the hazards in the code, not a generic wellbeing plan
The hierarchy of controls applied, with elimination or redesign of the work considered first (the NSW WHS Regulation 2025 made this explicit)
Genuine consultation with the people doing the work
Documented review cycles, so controls are tested over time

This is where many organisations are exposed.

“A policy in a folder is not a control.”

Sam Young, clinical psychologist and co-founder of Humn, from What’s below the surface

Support matters, but it sits downstream of the hazard. An Employee Assistance Program (EAP) helps a person after the fact; a control changes the work and is a proactive mechanism so that fewer people are harmed in the first place. The code expects the second.

An infographic to show what's changing in NSW's on 1 July 2026 in the psychosocial hazards code of practice

This is the direction of travel, not just a NSW story

If you operate outside NSW, don’t file this under ‘someone else’s problem’. Queensland already gives codes this weight, and psychosocial risk is being regulated more firmly across every Australian jurisdiction.

How to prepare before 1 July

You don’t need to do everything at once, but it’s a good idea to start now and show movement.

Get familiar with any relevant codes. Read the SafeWork NSW Code of Practice on managing psychosocial hazards and any other code that may be applicable to your organisation. As Cheryl Kraft Reid of oOh!media advises in our guide to navigating psychosocial risk management, leaders should personally understand the legislation and its intent.

Build a psychosocial hazard risk register. Identify your hazards, assess them and record the controls. Our free tools and templates give you a ready-made structure. Consider starting with a short-term plan for immediate risks, then a longer-term strategy built on continuous review.

Apply the hierarchy of controls. Ask what you can eliminate or redesign before you reach for training or support. Workload, role clarity and how change is managed are often where the real risk sits.

Consult the people doing the work. They’ll show you the friction you can’t see from above.

Test that controls actually work. A control no one uses isn’t a control.

Not sure where you’re starting from? Sonder’s psychosocial risk readiness assessment is a short quiz that flags your gaps and where to focus first.

How Sonder acts as a risk control

Meeting your duty of care is about how work is designed and led. Sonder supports the human side of that: proactive, real-time medical, mental health and safety support for your people, plus the insight to help you see where risk is building and evidence the care you provide.

If 1 July has moved this up your list, we’re happy to talk it through. Request a demo to see how Sonder can support your people and your duty of care.

Frequently asked questions

When do NSW Codes of Practice become enforceable? From 1 July 2026, when section 26A of the WHS Act 2011 (NSW) commences.

Does this create new legal duties? No. Your duty to manage psychosocial risk already exists. The change strengthens how codes of practice are used to judge whether you’ve met it.

Do we have to follow the code exactly? You must either comply with the code or demonstrate that your approach provides an equivalent or higher standard of safety, with evidence to back it up.

Does this apply outside NSW? The 1 July change is NSW-specific, but it mirrors Queensland and reflects a national tightening of psychosocial regulation. National employers should prepare across the board.

Is having an EAP enough to comply? No. Support services help people, but they sit downstream of the hazard. The code expects you to identify and control the risk at its source first.