Australia: Digital Work Systems | iGlobal Law

The New South Wales Parliament has passed new rules relating to the use of digital working systems. (See the Work Health and Safety Amendment (Digital Work Systems) Bill 2025, (“the Bill”)). Digital work systems (“DWS”) broadly means the use at work of AI enabled management tools, algorithmic scheduling, automation, digital surveillance technologies and automated decision-making systems.

The Bill places the use of DWS fully within the existing Work Health and Safety (WH&S) duties of employers. What this means for employers is discussed below.

The Bill has not yet received Assent and effective dates are not yet clear. Certain elements require further public consultation.

Key Elements

A new “DWS Duty” will require persons carrying on a business or undertaking to ensure, as far as reasonably practical, that the health and safety of workers is not put at risk by the allocation of work via a DWS.

The risks identified include:

Excessive or unreasonable workloads.
The use of excessive or unreasonable metrics to assess and track worker performance.
Excessive or unreasonable monitoring or surveillance of workers.
Unlawful discriminatory practices or decision making in the conduct of the business or undertaking.

The Bill provides for increased monitoring by WH&S entry permit holders who will be allowed to access DWS, including emails, algorithmic tools and other digital platforms, when investigating suspected WH&S breaches, subject to guidelines to be published by SafeWork following a public consultation.

Employer Action

Although the Bill is not yet in force, employers should begin considering its implications now. The reforms will require many organisations to reassess how they procure, implement, and manage their DWS.

Employers will need to treat DWS as potential sources of risk, in the same way they would machinery, equipment, or the physical work environment.

From a systems procurement perspective, organisations may also need to re‑negotiate vendor contracts to ensure appropriate protections are in place, including access to system information for WH&S compliance, transparency around algorithmic logic, and the ability to modify or disable harmful features.

Another key implication is the need for WH&S risk assessments to adapt, including for employers to review:

how digital systems allocate or pace work;
whether automated decision‑making may contribute to stress or psychological harm;
how transparent and explainable the algorithmic tools used are; and
the potential for bias or unfair outcomes.

Steps to Ensure Compliance

Organisations can take proactive steps now to position themselves for compliance:

Conduct a digital WH&S audit to review active DWS and assess their potential WH&S risk factors.
Update WH&S policies to ensure identified DWS risks are incorporated into existing governance frameworks.
Consult with workers on DWS‑related risks, as workers experience the effects of these systems most directly and early consultation can help identify risks and demonstrate proactive compliance.
Review data governance and access protocols to ensure robust data security, privacy controls, and audit trails, particularly given the expanded access rights under the Bill.
Engage with suppliers to seek clarity on how digital tools operate, what data they use, how risks can be mitigated, and whether contractual provisions are needed to support transparency and WH&S compliance.
Train managers and supervisors so they understand how digital systems can create WH&S risks and how to respond to concerns raised by workers.

This is a high-level general update only. Legal advice should be obtained on specific circumstances.