Keeping pace with legislative change remains essential for employers.

At Gow‑Gates, we continue to actively track the latest developments and assess their practical implications for organisations and their people. As further information becomes available, we will ensure our clients and broader network remain well‑informed. We will also be hosting a webinar shortly to outline the updates, key considerations, and what employers should be preparing for. More information on this will follow.

The NSW Parliament has now passed the Government’s Workers Compensation Legislation Amendment (Reform and Modernisation) Bill 2025 (“Bill 2”). This follows the passage of a revised version of the Workers Compensation Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 in November last year.

Key amendments in Bill 2 for workers with a primary psychological injury include:

• Retaining the 15% whole person impairment threshold for work injury damages (WID) where an injury was notified before commencement.
• Introducing an intensive “Return to Work” program that extends medical benefits and income support for an additional year.
• Increasing the whole person impairment (WPI) threshold for weekly payments beyond 130 weeks to 25% from 1 July 2026, rising to 28% from 1 July 2029.
• Confirming that a worker cannot apply to the Personal Injury Commission until the Industrial Relations Commission has determined whether the alleged conduct constitutes ‘relevant conduct’.

Additional measures in the Bill include:

• A legislated freeze on the Nominal Insurer’s premium target collection rate for the 2026–27 and 2027–28 premium years.
• Allowing employers to rely on the reasonable management action defence where it is the significant cause of the psychological injury.
• Clarifying that the new employer excess will apply to all claims made under a policy issued or renewed with the Nominal Insurer on or after 4pm, 30 June 2026.

The NSW Government will confirm commencement dates for both Bills. In the interim, we will continue to monitor developments closely and provide guidance as further detail becomes available.