The Context
In early 2025, WorkSafe NZ investigated four choking deaths of IHC residents under the care of IDEA Services. The investigation found documented failures where staff did not follow mandated Safer Eating and Drinking Plans. In one case, there was a direct breach of the provider’s contract with Whaikaha. Concurrently, a separate incident saw a worker shot in the chest with a nail gun, resulting in a $6,000 compensation payment. This is not just a series of tragic accidents. It is a pattern of systemic operational and cultural failure where known, life-critical controls were ignored.
The Risk
WorkSafe has explicitly stated it will continue enforcement under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015. For directors, this is the trigger. Section 44 of the HSWA 2015 imposes a primary duty of care. A documented failure to follow a safety plan is prima facie evidence of a failure in that duty. The liability is not limited to the entity. Under Section 151, an officer can be prosecuted personally if they fail to exercise due diligence to ensure the company complies with its duties. The fine for an individual under Section 151 can reach $600,000. The reputational and financial exposure from a direct breach of a Crown contract is a separate, career-ending governance failure.
The Control
Your board must shift from auditing policy existence to verifying control effectiveness. Demand evidence that critical procedures are not just written but are understood, resourced, and followed. This means direct, unannounced engagement with frontline teams, not just reviewing management reports. The gap between a plan on a shelf and a worker’s action is where liability is born.
The Challenge
These are the critical questions you should be raising at the board table:
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What is our evidence, beyond manager attestation, that the three most critical safety controls in our operations are being followed correctly 100% of the time? |
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When was the last time a board member spoke directly and privately with a frontline worker about procedural shortcuts, and what did we do with that intelligence? |
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Does our audit committee’s charter explicitly require it to test for the failure of key controls, rather than just their design? |