Australian Capital Territory Numbered Acts

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT (NO. 18 OF 1989) - SECT 48

48. (1) The Registrar may, upon application by—

        (a)     the employer of the employees in a designated work group;

        (b)     if a declaration under section 39 is in force in respect of a construction site—any employer who is a sub-contractor to whom the declaration relates;

        (c)     any involved union in relation to a designated work group; or

        (d)     if there is no involved union in relation to a designated work group—any employee in the group;

disqualify the health and safety representative for the group for a specified period not exceeding 5 years from being a health and safety representative for any designated work group.

(2) An application referred to in subsection (1) shall be in writing setting out the grounds on which the disqualification is sought.

(3) The Registrar shall not disqualify a health and safety representative unless the Registrar believes on reasonable grounds that—

        (a)     action taken by the representative in the exercise or purported exercise of his or her powers under this Act or the regulations was taken—

              (i)     with the intention of causing harm to the employer or to an undertaking of the employer; or

              (ii)     unreasonably, capriciously or otherwise than for the purpose for which the power was conferred on the representative; or

        (b)     the representative has intentionally used, or disclosed to another person, for a purpose that is not connected with the exercise of a power of a health and safety representative, information acquired from an employer.

(4) For the purpose of exercising the power under subsection (1), the Registrar shall have regard to—

        (a)     the harm (if any) that was caused to the employer or to an undertaking of the employer as a result of the action of the representative;

        (b)     the past record of the representative in exercising the powers of a health and safety representative;

        (c)     the effect (if any) on the public interest of the action of the representative; and

        (d)     such other matters as the Registrar thinks relevant.

(5) Where the Registrar disqualifies a health and safety representative, the Registrar shall take all reasonably practicable steps to give notice in writing of the disqualification to the representative.