Fatigue Management in the Northern Territory
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Frequently asked questions
Fatigue management requirements under Northern Territory law
1. Does the NT regulate driving hours?
No. The Northern Territory has adopted an outcome-based approach to managing driver fatigue. Under the NT Workplace Health and Safety Act, employers have an obligation to provide a safe workplace, which does not endanger workers or others. For businesses which involve transport, driver fatigue is a hazard which must be managed through good work practices.
2. Why doesn’t the NT follow the national driving hours regulations?
The Northern Territory has unique driving conditions with long straight roads, greater distances to cover, low traffic volumes, and climatic extremes. It is not practical to require a driver to stop in the middle of a spinifex plain in 40 ° + heat because she or he has reached their prescribed driving hours limit.
The regulations do not take into account important issues in the management of fatigue, for example, driver health and lifestyle, quality and time of rest (body clock), and vehicle accommodation.
3. Why isn’t the Code of Practice mandatory?
The safety outcomes of the Code of Practice are mandatory – the methods you use to achieve those outcomes are not. This allows flexibility for you to develop a system that suits your business. If you do choose to go outside the guidelines it is up to you to demonstrate that the safety outcomes are still being met.
4. Fatigue management is only for long distance trucking operations, so why should I implement fatigue management systems?
Fatigue is an issue in all driving operations. Therefore, where you or your workers drive as a part of your business, you must manage fatigue.
The package of fatigue management materials has been produced to help you deal with this aspect of your business. These resources can be adapted to suit your particular operation.