Managing Duty of Care

Hi, it's Georgia from Tribe Recruitment's Contact Center and Customer Service Temp Team, and welcome to Tribe Temp Talks.

By legal definition, an employer's duty of care refers to the obligation to provide a safe working environment, with the aim of protecting their employees’ health and well-being.

Since the Employment Relations (Triangular Employment) Amendment Act came into effect in 2019, this has meant both the temp agency and the host site (or client) have a responsibility to exercise reasonable duty of care towards their temps.

There are many ways to exercise duty of care within triangular relationships. This can include:

• Regular temp check-ins

• Health and safety protocols

• Providing clear assignment details

Being responsive to any perceived workplace issues

Duty of care can also extend to personal situations that might be perceived as atypical. These could include:

• Mental health

• Domestic issues

• Other health-related concerns

• Behavioural issues

When managing these sorts of situations, exercising good faith along with our duty of care responsibilities is critical.

However, it is just as important to recognize our limits in exercising these obligations - and to know when it's time to refer to the experts, whether that be mental health professionals, medical specialists, or the appropriate authorities.

It’s also vital to consider health, safety, and privacy throughout this process.

Tribe Temp’s guide to managing each party’s responsibilities in a triangular relationship can be summarized by the five Cs:

Clarity, Consistency, Communication, Contracts, and of course Care.