Psychosocial risk management
Care for the people who keep us growing.
Harvest deadlines, seasonal teams, remote work and uncertainty can create psychosocial hazards on farms. Practical, accessible support should fit the realities of agricultural work.
The risk is real
23.3%
SuperFriend’s 2023 Indicators of a Thriving Workplace data reported that 23.3% of agricultural workers surveyed had experienced a mental health condition in the previous 12 months.
Self-reported survey data; conditions are not necessarily caused by work.
Read the sourceRecognise. Consult. Act.
Work design, workplace interactions and working conditions can cause psychological or physical harm. Assess how often exposure occurs, how long it lasts and how severe it is.
Risk exposure
Weather, price changes and harvest windows can intensify demands and make working hours unpredictable.
Practical controls
Build contingency plans, agree realistic priorities and protect breaks and recovery during busy periods.
Risk exposure
Working alone can delay assistance and reduce day-to-day connection and access to support.
Practical controls
Use agreed check-ins, reliable communications and a practical emergency response plan that covers remote tasks.
Risk exposure
Seasonal or migrant workers may not understand instructions or feel safe raising a problem.
Practical controls
Use understandable training, confirm comprehension, clarify responsibilities and provide reporting options outside the immediate supervisor.
An illustrative workplace situation
a frost event triggers extended shifts and anxiety about seasonal work. Consult the team on revised priorities, rest and employment communication; separate business uncertainty from preventable work design risks.
Improve the conditions around people—not just their ability to cope.
The cost of leaving risks unchecked
>4×
Mental health claims had more than four times the median time lost compared with physical injury and illness claims.
Source and scope>3×
Median compensation for mental health claims was more than three times that for physical injury and illness claims.
Source and scopeReal duties.
WHS regulators can issue improvement or prohibition notices and prosecute breaches. Penalties and powers vary by jurisdiction.
Source and scopeClaim comparisons use Australian serious workers’ compensation claims in 2020–21, reported by Safe Work Australia in February 2024. National figures—not agriculture estimates or predictions of individual harm. Enforcement depends on the applicable law and circumstances.
Australian employers must manage risks to psychological as well as physical health under applicable WHS or OHS laws.
Consult permanent, seasonal and labour-hire workers in formats and languages they understand.
A course or an employee assistance program does not, by itself, discharge this duty. Check your regulator and seek advice for your circumstances.
A practical starting point
Consult workers and HSRs across roles and shifts. Combine their experiences with incident, workload and absence information.
Assess severity, duration and frequency. Record interacting hazards and who may be affected.
Start with work design, staffing, environment and behaviour. Assign an owner and review date.
Ask workers whether exposure has reduced. Update the risk register when conditions change.
Flourish360 for agriculture
Connect personal growth and wellbeing with psychosocial risk insight. Help people build confidence while making hazards, controls and follow-through easier for leaders to see.
We partner with wellbeing programs for a holistic approach. Flourish360 supports your process—it does not replace consultation, effective controls or professional advice.
See what fits your workplacePrepared by Flourish360 using Australian regulatory and sector guidance. Examples are illustrative, not customer case studies. Statistics describe the stated population and period; they do not predict individual risk. This is general information, not legal or clinical advice. Workplace photographs are AI-generated illustrations.
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