Every employer has an obligation to ensure the health and safety of all its employees, and to ensure that persons not in its employment are not exposed to risks to their health or safety. Obligations to employees. Section 8 of the Occupational Health and SafetyAct2000 (NSW) (the 'OH&S Act') provides that every employer must ensure the health, safety and welfare at work of all its employees. The courts have said that this section imposes an "almost absolute" duty on employers. It is almost axiomatic that if an incident occurs the employer has failed in its obligations unless the employer can demonstrate that the incident was beyond its control or that it took all reasonably practicable steps to prevent it. Obligations to persons other than employees. Section 10 of the NSW Act provides that every employer/controller of worksitemust ensure that persons not in its employment are not exposed to risks to their health or safety arising from the conduct of the employer's undertaking while they are at the employer's place of work. The obligation extends to contractors, visitors to the workplace, and members of the public. The practical implication of this section of the OH&S Act is that the employer will have an obligation to ensure the safety of its representatives even if they are engaged through a labour hire agency and are not employees of the employer. In a number of cases where labour hire staff have been injured at work, WorkCover NSW has successfully prosecuted both the labour hire agencies and the companies engaging their services. Practical considerations. Compliance with these obligations is best achieved through a risk management strategy which is incorporated into the day to day operations of the employer. A risk management approach will seek to identify hazards, assess the seriousness of those hazards, then make changes which eliminate, minimise, or protect people against, the identified hazards. Generally, compliance with an employer's obligation to employees and others will include: (a) proper training of employees and labour hire staff; (b) adequate supervision; (c) safe and appropriate equipment; and (d) safe systems of work. For example, such as a company that employs female (or male) representatives selling door to door at night. In relation to the nature of this work, the employer may consider implementing the following practical measures: (a) personal duress alarms carried by representatives; (b) training for representatives which is of particular relevance for hazards they may encounter during the evening door to door sales visits; (c) a "buddy" system for representatives to report to each other and their supervisor periodically; and (d) n adequate system of recording and monitoring the location of each representative whilst they are at work. It is also useful to encourage, and provide facilities for, employees or labour hire staff to be involved in safety issues. They should be able to discuss concerns with, and provide suggestions to, supervisors and management. Most importantly, compliance with occupational health and safety obligations is best achieved when management commitment to safety is expressed and where that commitment is evidenced in the conduct of the business