Working from home is a common practice, so it is important that employers understand that occupational health and safety (OHS) and workers compensation obligations that apply in the workplace also apply.
Creating and maintaining a safe and productive work environment is important wherever work is done and the employer’s responsibilities do not change when employees work from home.
You, as an employer is legally required to do all that is reasonably practicable to ensure a safe and healthy workplace – so you should discuss OHS issues with employees, and work together to identify and manage health and safety risks associated with home working.
It’s good practice for businesses to have formal OHS policies and guidelines on these situations.
Some of the processes should include risk assessments, risk monitoring and risk reduction procedures.
Summary: you should strongly consider what you have in place for employee who work from home and if in doubt, please do not hesitate to contact HR Central.