Towards the end of 2024, the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) published a new guide on health and safety in the workplace, described as ‘an indispensable tool for promoting a safe and compliant workplace’.

But why has the guide been released now – has anything changed since the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 was passed in 1993?

According to Sujatha Hariparsad, an occupational medicine specialist at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, certain regulations under the act have been amended in the past few years –ergonomics regulations (2019), physical agents regulations (March 2025) and noise exposure regulations (March 2025) – which employers and employees alike need to be made aware of. Most likely, though, she says, this is an initiative by the DEL to make occupational health and safety information more easily accessible to the ‘common worker on the factory floor’.

‘The act may come across as legal jargon that many workers cannot identify with. In general, legislation is not easily understandable and accessible to the common worker, and I feel that this guide is a good example of bringing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OHSA] to the factory floor and accessible to all.’

Indeed, the world of work is heaving and shifting beneath our very feet. No sooner had Covid paved the way for ‘digital nomads’ to work from anywhere in the world, when artificial intelligence (AI) – large language model AI – swooped in and shifted the goal posts yet again. Not to mention, industry-specific technological advancements in robotics and AI that the layperson is unlikely to ever hear about.

Are SA’s occupational health and safety regulations keeping pace? ‘There has been some effort to focus on education and training of employees and employers to engage with the legislation and to increase knowledge of risks and their associated adverse health outcomes,’ says Hariparsad. ‘However, since the promulgation of the act in 1993, many workplaces have evolved; even as recently as post-Covid, people have developed new working practices that have greatly changed since the 90s,’ she says.

‘Also, we must always be cognisant of the changing global economies and the emergence of SMMEs and the informal economy. With the changing global economic landscape, health and safety takes a back seat when it comes to keeping financially afloat. We see nowadays that more focus is paid on production and delivery of goods as opposed to health and safety. In some instances, when we look at the informal economy and SMMEs, these industries cannot afford health and safety measures due to resource constraints, especially with the informal economy being a non-legislated working group.’

She says that while OHSA regulations have been regularly updated and reviewed in SA, with the introduction of AI, nanotechnology and cleaner fuels, some industries have new workplace processes and use materials that may affect health and safety and have not been fully interrogated and researched.

While SA’s OHSA regulatory framework compares favourably with international norms, compliance is not as good, and enforcement is limited. ‘Our laws are based on principles of self-regulation by employers, but this does not work, as employers don’t take responsibility,’ she says. There are few factory inspectors nationally, and companies know there is only a small chance of them being inspected, and would rather pay the fine when they fail an inspection, than invest in health and safety.’

That said, some industries have shown significant improvements in employee safety, most notably the mining industry. In 2024, fatalities in mining fell to a record low, with 16% fewer injuries than the previous year (2023). Between 1995 and 2022, the number of fatalities overall declined by 91% with fallof-ground fatalities in particular declining by 96%. Over the same period, the total number of injuries decreased by 76%.

In 2021, the construction industry was considered the most OHSA-compliant sector in the country, but has since come under scrutiny following the 2024 George building collapse, which resulted in 34 fatalities. According to the DEL, in the 2023/2024 financial year a total of 106 390 workplaces OHS inspections were conducted. Of those, 69 917 (66%) employers were classified as compliant and 36 473 (34%) were found non-compliant.

Despite this glaring compliance gap, construction industry data and knowledge hub DataBuild has stated that ignoring health and safety regulations is ‘not an option’. From a liability perspective, if a company has not made any legal appointments as prescribed by the act, the liable party automatically becomes the CEO of the business. If injuries occur without the employer taking the necessary pre-emptive steps as prescribed by the OHSA, there will be significant financial repercussions as well as criminal liability, potentially leading to prison time. Employers may face fines up to R1 million for breaches, and in severe cases, imprisonment for up to two years. Moreover, the DEL has the authority to shut down a workplace if it poses a risk to employee health and safety. This can cause significant reputational damage to a business, which it will find difficult, if not impossible, to recover from.

This year, new draft regulations for the construction industry have been proposed that are intended to improve health and safety in the industry. However, Hendrik Terblanche, MD of legal risk and compliance consultancy Legricon, has some concerns. ‘One of the challenges with the construction regulations has always been the one-size-fits-all approach,’ he says. ‘The regulations are clearly written with large construction projects in mind, yet also apply to minor construction work. This is specifically problematic in respect of notification to the DEL, the written specifications and health and safety plans, and the legal appointments,’ he says.

‘The scope of application of the regulations, determined by the definition of “construction work”, is also too wide and open to divergent interpretations. The revision of the regulations grants the opportunity to address these concerns, but the proposed draft changes do not,’ says Terblanche.

The proposed changes to the notification requirement add a lot of red tape and delays, he adds, and this means many employers will probably not comply.

‘The proposed changes to the requirement for a construction work permit from the DEL do not address the grey areas that already exist and actually add to the uncertainties. A very contentious issue is the definition of a competent person, which affects more than 20 other requirements in the regulations.’

The DEL’s Competent Person Guideline, which is separate from the regulations, states: ‘It is not possible for the Department of Employment and Labour to provide a general list of professions and the exact knowledge, training and experience required. Every employer must determine their own requirements for each level of competency required for work or tasks to be performed; however, the department may require an employer, industry or sector to improve their competency requirements where health and safety standards may be compromised.’

Meanwhile, in an apparent contradiction, the current and proposed definition of ‘competent person’ in the construction regulations does not seem to acknowledge that it is up to the employer to determine their own requirements for competence, says Terblanche, emphasising specific qualifications over experience (a key component of competence).

Hariparsad believes that SA industries are in an advantageous position. ‘There are trends emerging of innovative ways of working that have not yet gained traction in our country. However, I feel that we have an advantage as we can prepare ourselves for these new changes as we see them happening globally. For example, upskilling and re-training of workers to fill the gaps in our knowledge base, and develop strategies to adapt to dynamic workplaces.’

Climate change, too, needs to be taken into consideration, as those who work outdoors will begin to face more extreme weather events and temperatures.

On 6 March 2025, the Minister of Employment and Labour promulgated the Physical Agents Regulations. In this context, a ‘physical agent’ is defined as a ‘source of energy which may result in injury or disease after exposure and includes, but is not limited to, cold stress, heat stress, vibration, non-ionising radiation and illumination’.

‘Occupational exposures to heat and cold are becoming a crucial component in the workplace,’ says Hariparsad.

‘Globally, there has been a move to focus on heat stress, especially in the agricultural sectors; however, in South Africa, this has still not gained sufficient momentum. Especially with climate change, varying changes in weather patterns have a critical effect on workers and workplaces that need to be sufficiently addressed under legislation. We need to engage with climate change adaptations to ensure that we can confront these adverse outcomes in an appropriate manner.’

For now, regulations, guides and good intentions will matter little unless they are matched by inspections and accountability. A modernised legal framework is only as effective as its enforcement, and SA’s record on compliance remains uneven.

With technology reshaping job roles, climate change and new materials amplifying workplace hazards, and small businesses operating on tight margins, a reactive approach is insufficient. Unless the state invests in oversight and the non-compliant 34% of industry shifts to proactive prevention, ‘occupational health and safety’ will remain a slogan, not a standard.

By Robyn Maclarty
Image: Gallo/Getty Images