Mr GREG WARREN: To put some facts into this debate, the purpose of this bill is to amend the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 to implement respective recommendations made by parliamentary inquiries. These amendments aim to improve protections to worker health and safety relating to digital work systems used by a person conducting a business or undertaking. The policy matter has been considered previously within workers compensation legislation reform. The bill makes amendments to the Work Health and Safety Act. Firstly, it inserts a definition of "digital work system" that means "an algorithm, artificial intelligence, automation or online platform". This bill ultimately seeks to make the Act fit for purpose in the modern age. People are now working in digital spaces. Members would be used to calling this a workplace, but the reality is that there are now digital workplaces. I will go into some of the evidence about that fact later on in my contribution.

Secondly, the bill amends section 19 of the Act to clarify that the existing primary duty of care to workers extends to digital work systems. Thirdly, it creates a duty for a person conducting a business or undertaking to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the health and safety of a worker is not put at risk from the allocation of work using a digital work system. In addition, it allows a work health and safety entry permit holder to exercise their right of entry in relation to a digital work system. The bill also provides that the regulator must issue and publish on its website guidelines about how a right of entry may be exercised when inspecting a digital work system—I emphasise "may be exercised".

Finally, the bill provides for a review of the amendments it introduces in circumstances where the model work health and safety laws developed by Safe Work Australia deal with substantially the same subject matter and provide a higher standard of health and safety for workers. Interestingly, this goes back to 2020 when a select committee was established to inquire into and report on the impact of technological and other change on the future of work and workers in New South Wales. In 2022 the committee recommended that the Government consider amending work health and safety laws to address growing concerns surrounding work intensification and to provide for the types of measures that I will address later in this contribution. But, lo and behold, what did the previous Government do? Nothing. That is why we find ourselves here today.

The Act is not fit for purpose. This Government is doing what any sensible government would do and what any sensible Minister would do. We are bringing this bill before the House to amend the Act to make it fit for purpose. Time has moved on, and people are now working within digital spaces. I do not pretend to be a technological expert, but I will listen to the people who work within that industry and to the contributions of others. I draw the attention of the House to the findings in the 2022 report of the Select Committee on the Impact of Technological and Other Change on the Future of Work and Workers in New South Wales:

Finding 1

That New South Wales is falling behind other states and comparable nations in developing laws that establish decent work in the gig economy.

Finding 2

That the failure to provide gig workers with a minimum wage, paid leave and other basic workplace entitlements is increasing inequality in New South Wales.

Finding 3

That gig workers currently lack the power to interact and negotiate with on-demand platforms as equals in New South Wales.

Finding 4

That the failure to provide gig workers with access to a low-cost independent tribunal empowered to hear and decide disputes is leading to injustice in New South Wales.

I note the contributions made by members opposite. I love how they always like to bring it back to having a swipe at the unions. This bill is not just for the unions; it is for workers working within a digital industry who do not have a safe place to work. Unions have done a great job in the past advocating for our workers, but there are instruments in this proposed legislation, where appropriate, for the protection of businesses and the integrity of their intellectual property. The conservatives of this State have used this debate as an opportunity to take yet another swipe at our union movement and working class people within New South Wales, further displaying how out of touch they are.

The workers we are talking about are commonly young people. The feedback from the most recent Federal and other elections is that they feel like they have been forgotten by government. The proposed legislation makes sure that this particular field of work is not forgotten and that everyone has the right—not the luxury, but the right—to work in a safe workplace. Everyone deserves that. I draw to the attention of the House evidence given to the 2024 Federal Inquiry into the Digital Transformation of Workplaces. I will not mention the name of any specific organisation or individual; I will simply quote from their evidence. A food delivery driver stated:

I appear before you today not just as … a food delivery driver from Canberra, but as a voice for countless gig workers who find themselves at the mercy of a system that is increasingly driven by artificial intelligence and machine learning.

... we are the frontline recipients of automated tech‑based work allocation. Every task we undertake, every route we navigate, every second of our labour is monitored and judged by algorithms. In many ways, our jobs have become the test case for how AI can reshape the workplace.

This individual further states:

Let me paint a picture for you. Imagine waking up every day knowing that your livelihood is dictated by an algorithm—a cold, unfeeling piece of code that determines whether you get work, how much you're paid, and whether you still have a job tomorrow.

[Extension of time]

He continued:

If we decline too many jobs, the algorithm takes note. If we're delayed by traffic, the algorithm sends warnings, threatening to deactivate us if we don't speed up. And, if a customer is dissatisfied, the algorithm decides our fate—no questions asked, no context considered. The pressures of the system are immense. We're pushed to rush, to take risks, work long hours, all in the name of efficiency.

With the indulgence of the House, I quote from another submission to the inquiry:

… a study on drivers subjected to ADM showed how time pressures increased risk taking behaviour, including speeding, ignoring road signs, and driving in poor weather conditions, and contributed to long work hours, fewer breaks and driving when fatigued …

That is quite disturbing. To conclude, I come back to my original point that everyone is entitled to work in a safe workplace. As technology and artificial intelligence continue to advance, workplaces are being created in the digital sphere. Every worker is entitled to work in a safe and healthy work environment. Right now, they are not and we need to legislate that. The Act was introduced in 2011. We need to look at the findings of parliamentary inquiries that were put to the former Government. What did it do? Pretty much what it did for 12 or so years: nothing. This bill is before us because no action was taken by the previous Government. I am proud to be a member of a government that will take action to provide a safe and healthy workplace for each and every worker in New South Wales. I commend the bill to the House.