26 February 2026
Have your say on the Health and Safety at Work Amendment Bill
The Health and Safety at Work Amendment Bill makes significant changes to the Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA) and WorkSafe NZ Act.
We are encouraging individual members to also make written and oral submissions.
The way the Select Committee process works means that numbers count. The more submissions the Committee receives from businesses focused on improving health and safety, the more likely we are to influence improvements in the Bill.
The Forum intends to make both written and oral submissions to the Select Committee charged with considering, and recommending any changes to, the Bill. The Forum's draft submission will go out to members on Monday 9th March for feedback by Wednesday 11th March. The feedback time is unfortunately short due to Select Committee timeframes.
Given New Zealand's slow progress in bringing down rates of harm, it's important that we don't allow the focus to go off this issue. So, we'd encourage you to have your say on how this Bill might affect your organisation, sector, supply chain and New Zealand.
Why your input on the Bill matters
The Forum is concerned that, while well-intended, some proposals in the Bill could make improving New Zealand's health and safety performance harder, not easier, to achieve.
In particular, the Bill's current approach to critical risk and small businesses risks adding complexity and cost, potentially disadvantaging good businesses and allowing poor practice to persist.
Given this, we are preparing a submission to the Select Committee tasked with reviewing and reporting back on the Bill, and are seeking member input through three drop-in sessions. Your insights are essential to ensure all members of Parliament and the Government understand the Bill's real-world impact.
The Forum's submission will reflect a business leader perspective and be evidence-based. It will support proposals that add value, highlight areas needing refinement and offer pragmatic solutions to strengthen the Bill.
Our work is supported by a Reference Group including respected legal and safety experts and Forum CEOs.
Making a submission on the Health and Safety at Work Amendment Bill
Making a submission is relatively easy, and your submission doesn't need to be long. You can just focus on the key issues important to you.
To support members in this, we've provided some basic information on making a submission to the Select Committee, along with a template document you can use to write your submission.
You can find them in the next section below.
Download the submission template here
Writing a submission - The critical "how-tos"
1. Make a submission through Parliament's submissions portal
3. Keep contact details private
4. State whether you wish to speak to the Committee
5. The deadline for making submissions is Wednesday 18th March
Submission focus: Forum member and expert perspectives
To help you understand the Bill, we have pulled together the resources below:
- Full webinar recording: Understanding the Health and Safety at Work Amendment Bill. Watch here
The one-hour video has been divided into chapters, so you can jump to the sections most relevant to you.
- Written summary of key points about the Bill from our webinar. Download here
- Written summary of member feedback on the Bill from our drop-in sessions. Download here
- The Bill. Read here
National context: New Zealand's Health and Safety Performance
For more context about why this issue remains crucially important for New Zealand, take a look at these resources:
