Liabilities of Directors in new Industrial Manslaughter laws

3 April, 2025. 5 minute read.

From 16 September 2024, industrial manslaughter has been a formal offence under New South Wales work health and safety (WHS) legislation.

This change means that business owners, directors, and CEOs found to have significantly contributed to a workplace fatality through negligence or failure to meet their WHS obligations may face up to 25 years in prison. In addition, the business entity itself could face financial penalties of up to $18 million.

What is Industrial Manslaughter?

Industrial manslaughter is a specific type of Category 1 offence, which applies where a person has engaged in conduct that exposes someone to a risk of death or serious harm, and that conduct results in a fatality.

Previously, workplace fatalities could be prosecuted as general Category 1 offences, attracting significant penalties but not necessarily a manslaughter charge. Under the new laws, industrial manslaughter applies where gross negligence or recklessness can be shown to have played a role in a fatal incident.

What About Non-Fatal Incidents?

Directors and senior officers may still be prosecuted for Category 1 offences that do not result in a fatality but where the conduct was considered reckless or wilfully negligent. These charges depend on the intent and severity of the breach of WHS duties.

Amendments to the WHS Act 2011

The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) has been amended to include Section 34C, introducing the offence of industrial manslaughter. This amendment holds persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs) and their officers accountable for workplace fatalities resulting from gross negligence. Key Provisions of Section 34C are:

• The offence applies to PCBUs (the legal entity, e.g., business owners, employers) and Officers of a PCBU (e.g., company directors, CEOs).

• The individual or entity must have a health and safety duty.​

• They engage in conduct that breaches this duty.​

• The conduct causes the death of a worker or another individual

• The conduct is characterised by gross negligence.

Penalties

If found guilty of industrial manslaughter, the officers could face up to 25 years' imprisonment (Section 34C of the WHS Act 2011). Fines are not an alternative or a substitute for jail time — they may be imposed additionally in some jurisdictions or for lesser offences, but not in place of a custodial sentence for industrial manslaughter.

PCBUs could face fines up to $20 million.

Notably, there is no limitation period for initiating proceedings under this section, meaning charges can be brought at any time following the commission of the offence.​

What is it for Businesses?

These amendments emphasise the importance of PCBUs and their officers diligently upholding their health and safety obligations to prevent workplace fatalities and avoid severe legal consequences.

Courts have begun to take industrial manslaughter charges very seriously.

Queensland was the first Australian jurisdiction to record convictions under newly introduced industrial manslaughter laws, with two significant cases marking a turning point in workplace health and safety enforcement.

Case 1: In 2020, a business was convicted of industrial manslaughter following the death of a worker. The incident led to a record-setting fine of $3 million imposed on the company — the highest penalty under workplace safety legislation.

The District Court of Queensland found the company guilty under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) for failing to ensure the safety of workers. Two company directors were also held individually liable. They were each

• Convicted of reckless conduct – Category 1

• Sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment

• Suspended for 20 months.

The court noted that their failure to implement basic safety controls contributed directly to the fatality.

This case set a legal precedent, reinforcing the seriousness with which courts view executive failures in health and safety leadership.

Case 2: In a separate Queensland case in 2022, an individual operating a small business was convicted of industrial manslaughter after a worker was fatally crushed by a generator that fell from a forklift.

The business owner had been operating the forklift at the time of the incident. The court found that his negligent conduct directly contributed to the worker’s death. He was identified as the Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU) — a key duty holder under the Work Health and Safety Act and was:

• Sentenced to five years’ imprisonment

• Suspended after 18 months.

This was the first case where an individual (not a company officer in a larger organisation) was convicted and sentenced to jail under industrial manslaughter provisions in Queensland.

Case 3: In February 2024, Victoria recorded its first conviction under the state's workplace manslaughter laws. A stonemasonry company was fined $1.3 million following the death of a 25-year-old subcontractor who was fatally crushed at a Somerton factory in October 2021. The company's sole director was also convicted and placed on a two-year Community Corrections Order, requiring him to complete 200 hours of unpaid community work and a forklift operation course. The company and the director were also ordered to pay $120,000 in compensation to the worker's family for pain and suffering.

Although there is yet to be a case in New South Wales of a charge of Industrial Manslaughter, the cases above highlight the critical importance of following workplace safety protocols and the severe consequences of negligence leading to worker fatalities.

For more information on WHS training or WHS compliance services, or if you would like help to make your WHS management system even more robust, please feel free to contact us by email at train@courtenell.com.au or phone us on 02 9552 2066