Workplace safety – it’s not just physical!
May 22, 2025
When we think about workplace safety, the first thing that tends to come to mind is the risk of injury from physical hazards. However, an employee’s mental well-being is just as critical, even if not visible to the naked eye.
That’s why it’s crucial workers are ‘mentally fit’ or, in other words, have a good ability to think clearly and make good decisions.
Fatigue and burnout
Mental health is in the spotlight more than ever as organisations have grown to understand the importance of psychological health and safety in the workplace and the causal link which can lead to psychological or physical harm.
And when it comes to adverse impacts, fatigue and burnout must be considered.
Working extremely long hours, particularly across a prolonged period of time, can affect your cognitive function, putting you – and your colleagues and clients – at risk of psychological and physical injury.
At Talent Quarter, we have systems and checks in place to identify risks to both our internal employees and on-hired workforce that include nurses, aged care workers, disability and youth workers and allied health professionals.
Conducting site visits, undertaking risk assessments, and having strong systems in place to manage work hours and overtime are essential to eliminate psychosocial risks or minimise them so far as is reasonably practicable.
Talent Quarter’s on-hired workforce are required to be on high alert, aware of their environment, and play a crucial role in identifying hazards and providing feedback for review.
At times, for a variety of reasons, there can be pressure to work long hours, so we make a point of having respectful conversations with our clients to ensure our workforce gets their necessary breaks, minimising the risk of fatigue and burnout.
Engaging in proactive conversations to manage fatigue is important because the individuals we place, such as nurses or disability workers, are naturally inclined to want to be there for their patients and are therefore willing to work long hours. All organisations need to manage fatigue carefully to ensure their risk is reduced.
Being mentally prepared for the job
Having a poor understanding of your role – potentially through lack of communication around requirements or responsibilities – can have a detrimental effect on your mental capacity to perform it.
For example, you might be brought on to do a certain task, but when you arrive, you’re told to do something else and don’t know what you’re in for. These situations can result in a staff member becoming disengaged, which means their head is not in the right space.
That’s not to mention the risk of physical harm if the task involves operating equipment they are unfamiliar with. Not having a solid understanding of how to use a certain type of machinery can lead to a physical injury.
Organisations must understand their duty of care and be mindful when placing people in roles where they’re unfamiliar with the work environment – be it a residential home, facility or hospital – and/or the personnel. Ensuring a proper induction is provided by an authorised representative at the host site forms the foundation for this process – providing an opportunity to ask questions and engage in dialogue around safety measures and response procedures.
Check in with yourself
Workers have a responsibility to help safeguard their own mental wellbeing and safety.
It’s crucial to check in with yourself on a regular basis. Taking a few minutes to ask yourself questions like: ‘Do I need support?’ ‘Do I have a good work-life balance?’ ‘Do I have a balanced diet?’ ‘Do I need to rest a bit more?’ ‘Am I OK to drive?’
The last question, in particular, is really important in light of concerning road safety statistics. You don’t want to put yourself – or individuals under your care – at risk on the road.
At Talent Quarter, we have an EAP (employee assistant program) called Uprise that offers counselling and wellbeing support services to both our internal employees and on-hired workforce. They can self-check in, receive a mental health score and compare it with previous scores to get a good sense of how they are travelling.
See the signs
In widening the focus of mental wellbeing beyond self-care to look out for others, it can be challenging to see when someone else is struggling with their mental health.
Common indicators can include changes in behaviour, social disengagement and even physical symptoms.
If you see someone struggling, respectfully ask them if they are OK. There are various avenues for support, and often taking the first step and letting someone know you are struggling is the most difficult.
“Let’s look out for ourselves and one another to keep our workplaces safe.”
By James Francis
Risk and Governance Lead at Talent Quarter
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Meet Catherine Harris: The Leadership Mind Behind Project Roar At Talent Quarter, we really do believe strong workforce outcomes are driven by strong leadership. As part of our commitment to delivering meaningful value beyond recruitment, we’re proud to partner with Catherine Harris, Founder of Project Roar , to deliver a quarterly Leadership Masterclass Series focused on strengthening leadership capability across the sectors we support. Exciting! This initiative reinforces an important objective for us, which is to deepen our client relationships through high-impact learning opportunities , helping organisations build stronger leadership capability across the sectors we support. With over 20 years’ experience in career and leadership development, Catherine brings practical, outcome-focused insights that help organisations build high-performing, engaged teams. Ahead of the upcoming series, we sat down with Catherine to learn more about her background, her approach to leadership, and what participants can expect. Q&A with Catherine Harris For those who may not know you, can you tell us a little about your background and what led you to found Project Roar? I’ve spent my entire career at the intersection of talent and leadership. I built my early career in recruitment before moving into senior internal talent roles, including heading up the Talent Acquisition function at Singtel Optus. I led a leadership team responsible for all national hiring, from call centre through to C-suite, and what that experience really gave me was a front-row seat to what great leadership looks like and, just as importantly, what happens when it’s missing. You see the impact every day - in who stays, who leaves, who thrives, and who disengages. It almost always comes back to the leader. From there I moved into a Business Manager role supporting one of the senior executives at Optus, which sharpened my commercial thinking and gave me a deep understanding of how leadership plays out at the executive level - the pressures, the decision-making, and the ripple effect a leader has across an entire organisation. When I made the decision to leave corporate and eventually start Project Roar, I knew I wanted to focus on leadership and career coaching. I’d seen too many talented people get promoted into leadership roles with no development, no support, and no toolkit - and I wanted to change that. I now work with individuals and organisations to build stronger, more confident leaders and help people forge successful careers. What can participants expect to walk away with from this Masterclass Series with Talent Quarter? Honestly, the thing I’m most excited about is that we’re giving people development they wouldn’t normally prioritise. We all know how it goes - leadership development is important, but it keeps getting bumped for the “real work.” This series removes that barrier. It’s bite-sized, practical, and designed to fit into a busy schedule through a lunch-and-learn format . Across the four sessions, participants will build real, usable skills: how to delegate with clarity and confidence , how to have courageous conversations around underperformance , how to lead with positivity and a growth mindset , and how to communicate strategically to keep teams aligned and engaged . These are the everyday leadership moments that make-or-break team performance, and participants will leave each session with something they can apply straightaway. What’s one practical insight or shift you’re excited to share with participants? The shift I see time and again in my coaching work is when leaders realise that the things holding them back aren’t big, complex strategic problems. They’re the everyday leadership moments they’re not getting right. They’re hanging onto tasks instead of delegating with clarity. They’re avoiding the tough conversation because they’re hoping the problem will sort itself out. They’re communicating reactively instead of strategically. Or they’re so focused on putting out fires that they’ve lost sight of the kind of leader they actually want to be. What I love about this series is that each session tackles one of those moments head-on. What’s one common mistake organisations make when developing leaders? Simply not doing it. That’s the honest answer. Organisations will invest heavily in hiring the right people. They’ll invest in systems and technology. But when it comes to actually developing the leaders who are responsible for driving performance and culture every single day, it falls off the priority list. People get promoted into leadership roles because they were brilliant at their previous job, and then they’re just expected to figure it out. There’s no structured development, no coaching, no investment in the skills that leadership actually requires - things like delegation, communication, giving feedback, and navigating change. And then we wonder why engagement drops or performance stalls. If you want strong leaders, you have to build them. It doesn’t happen by accident. What’s Coming Next? As part of this partnership, Talent Quarter and Project Roar will be launching a quarterly four-part Leadership Masterclass Series designed to equip leaders with practical tools they can apply immediately in their roles. The first webinar, The Art of Delegation , will focus on helping leaders delegate with clarity and confidence by setting clear outcomes, defining ownership, and empowering their teams to take responsibility. In the lead-up to the webinar and masterclass series, we’ll also be sharing a series of leadership insights and perspectives from Catherine , giving our community a preview of the thinking and practical strategies that will be explored further during the sessions. Strengthening Leadership Across Health and Care Through this Masterclass Series, Talent Quarter aims to equip leaders with practical tools that can be applied immediately , strengthening performance, communication and team effectiveness across health and care organisations. We’re excited to partner with Catherine Harris and look forward to supporting our clients and partners through this initiative - continuing to invest in leadership capability across the sectors we serve. Stay tuned for the next instalment in this series!
