5 September 2024
From 1 January 2025, principal contractors will be required to ensure the improved amenities including, on some projects, designated female toilets, are reasonably available on site.
A new Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) Regulation sets out these new obligations for “small” projects (construction work costing more than $250,000 and less than $7.5 million), “large” projects (construction work costing more than $7.5 million) and “multilevel” projects (construction projects of buildings with at least four levels of a structure not counting ground level).
These new obligations are contained in the Work Health and Safety (Amenities for Construction Work) Amendment Regulation 2024.
The new Regulations require that there must be at least 1 toilet for each 15 construction persons. A construction person is defined as a principal contractor or worker who is performing construction work. This toilet must be “readily available”, for example:
- On a single level building, toilets are located within 100m of where the construction work is being performed
- On a construction site for a road or a solar or wind farm, toilets are located within:
- (a) 200m of where the construction work is being performed, or
- (b) if the construction person has immediate access to a vehicle – a 2 kilometre trip by the vehicle from where the construction work is being performed
In addition, there are the following new requirements for designated female toilets:
- For a “small” project, with more than 15 construction persons, there must be at least 1 designated female toilet, for each 100 construction persons in addition to the 1 toilet for each 15 construction persons outlined above. For example:
- If there are 1 to 15 construction persons for the small construction project
- (a) there must be at least 1 toilet, and
- (b) no designated female toilet is required.
- If there are 20 construction persons for the small construction project, there must be:
- (a) at least 2 toilets, and
- (b) at least 1 designated female toilet in addition to the toilets mentioned in paragraph (a).
- For a “large” project, there must be at least 1 designated female toilet, for each 100 construction persons in addition to the 1 toilet for each 15 construction persons outlined above
- If there are 1 to 15 construction persons for the large construction project, there must be:
- (a) at least 1 toilet, and
- (b) at least 1 designated female toilet in addition to the toilet mentioned in paragraph (a).
- If there are 120 construction persons for the large construction project, there must be
- (a) at least 8 toilets, and
- (b) at least 2 designated female toilets in addition to the toilets mentioned in paragraph (a).
- For multilevel construction, in addition to the large project requirements above (where applicable), there must be at least 1 toilet and 1 designated female toilet on at least each of the following levels of the building
- (a) ground level
- (b) the fourth level above ground (not counting ground level)
- (c) each third level after the fourth level
- (d) the fourth level below ground (not counting ground level)
- (e) each third level below the fourth level
- For example, if the project includes levels 1 to 4 below ground, ground level and levels 1 to 10 above ground, there must be at least 1 toilet and 1 designated female toilet on level 4 below ground, ground level and levels 4, 7 and 10 above ground.
The Regulation also states that female toilets must have access restricted so that it can only be used be females, and:
- Must, so far as is reasonably practicable, be located in close proximity to standalone non-designated toilet(s)
- Must be accessible by the female construction person without entering a block or room with a cubicle or urinal that may be used by a male construction person
- Must have a sanitary bin immediately adjacent to the toilet.
For further information, please contact the Master Builders Workplace, Health and Safety team. For a copy of the Regulations, please visit Work Health and Safety (Amenities for Construction Work) Amendment Regulation 2024.
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